Location Seen: Alexander III Bridge, Paris, Île-de-France, France
Artist: André Paul Arthur Massoulle
(1851-1901)
Title: Enfant au Poisson (Néréide) (1900)
Original Location: Alexander III Bridge, Paris, Île-de-France, France. On the left upstream side of the bridge (Paris)
Provenance:
About: Pont Alexandre III is an arch bridge that spans the Seine, connecting the Champs-Élysées quarter and the Invalides and Eiffel Tower Quarter of Paris. The bridge, with its exuberant Art Nouveau lamps, cherubs, nymphs, and winged horses at either end, was built between 1896 and 1900. It is named after Tsar Alexander III, who had concluded the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1892. His son Nicholas II laid the foundation stone in October 1896. The style of the bridge reflects that of the Grand Palais, to which it leads on the right bank.
The construction of the bridge is a marvel of 19th-century engineering, consisting of a 6 meters (20 ft) high single-span steel arch. The design, by the architect Joseph Cassien-Bernard [fr] and Gaston Cousin, was subject to strict controls that prevented the bridge from obscuring the view of the Champs-Élysées or the Invalides. Of the many sculptors involved, Jules Dalou, Emmanuel Frémiet, and Pierre Granet are the best known.
In Greek mythology, the Nereids or Nereides are sea nymphs (female spirits of sea waters), the 50 daughters of the 'Old Man of the Sea' Nereus and the Oceanid Doris, sisters to their brother Nerites.[1] They often accompany Poseidon, the god of the sea, and can be friendly and helpful to sailors (such as the Argonauts in their search for the Golden Fleece).
So this particular statue is called Enfant au Poisson, which in English translates to Child with Fish, although it is sometimes referred to as Genie au Trident, however, this is also one of four sculptures all with a similar theme, that gets referred to as the Genies avec des poissons ou des coquillages, which translates to Geniuses with fish or shellfish.