with stamped signature (lower right)pencil Unframed: 16 x 18 cm. (6 1/4 x 7 1/8 in.) Framed: 35.2 x 36.1 cm. (13 7/8 x 14 1/4 in.)Provenance:Sale; Phillips, London, 11 May 1990, where purchased with a further work by the artist;With Abbott and Holder, London;Private Collection, London. The Property of a Lady Notes:Marie-Rosalie Bonheur was born in Bordeaux, the eldest of four children who all became artists, and is known to have grown up with a love of animals, and a fascination with their relationships with people. In the 1840s she travelled around the French countryside, making detailed studies of each new breed she encountered, often depicting them with farmers such as the present example. Bonheur was decorated with the French Legion of Honour by Empress Eugenie in 1865, before being promoted to Officer of the Order in 1894. She was the first female artist to receive this award.