LA STATUE DU BUSTE DE MARCEL SPONT

About

Jean-Marie Mengue – 1906

This statue pays tribute to the Pyrenean mountaineer Marcel Spont.

The bronze bust stands on a rock of grey Saint-Béat marble, into which the mountaineer’s equipment has been carved. The commemorative inscriptions are engraved on the rock. The sculptor’s signature and the date are engraved on the left-hand side of the bust.

The monument is the work of Jean-Marie Mengue (1855–1939), a sculptor from Luchon, who signed it and dated it 1907. He is the creator of several other works in the town. Following the death of Marcel Spont on 6 September 1906, after a fatal fall at the Brèche des Spijeoles, a committee was formed to launch a fundraising campaign to erect a monument in his memory.

By the summer of 1907, 2,972.50 francs had been raised. The marble plinth was donated in 1935 by Mr Lavigne, a marble mason from Saint-Béat. The monument was not unveiled until 5 September 1937, under the auspices of the Société Julien Sacaze, near the Carraouet fountain. Bertrand de Gorsse delivered a commemorative speech on this occasion.