LA STATUE DE LA VALLÉE DU LYS

About

Jean-Marie Mengue – 1900

Located in the small pond in front of the lake, it is an allegory of the nearby Lys Valley.

The statue stands in the centre of the Parc des Quinconces, in the middle of a circular pond situated next to the lake.

It rests on a cluster of small, haphazardly arranged rocks. The statue is made of white Carrara marble.

The construction of the statue was initiated by the Cadets de Gascogne, who were visiting Luchon on 10 and 11 August 1898. Led by Georges Leygues, a politician, and Mr Roujon, Director of Fine Arts, they were given a grand reception by the town under Mayor Bonnemaison. On their return from their excursion to the Lys Valley, they proposed the construction of a statue to symbolise it.

It was to be funded equally by the town and the State and created by the Luchon-based sculptor Jean-Marie Mengue, winner of a gold medal at the 1896 Salon. The project was approved by the town council on 11 October and confirmed by a ministerial decree dated 30 March 1899. The total cost was estimated at 10,000 francs, with the State also undertaking to supply the blocks of marble, which in fact constituted the bulk of the expenditure. Following discussions between the mayor and the sculptor regarding the nymph’s nudity, the statue was completed swiftly and presented at the 1900 Salon.

As the town was experiencing financial difficulties, the statue was subsequently stored for three years in a shed before being installed by municipal workers, who arranged the rocks to serve as a plinth, in accordance with the original design. It was unveiled on 6 September 1903, alongside another work by Mengue, *Cain and Abel*, which was donated to the city. The statue was initially enclosed by a wire fence; it is now surrounded by a circular water basin. Since 2004, the Musée des Augustins in Toulouse has held the plaster model of the statue.