The Rattlesnake

Frederic Remington

1905, revised 1908; this cast, before 1939 · Bronze · The American Wing

“The Rattlesnake” depicts a horse twisted in a reaction of fright to a rattlesnake as the rider grabs the horse’s mane with his left hand and holds his hat on with his right. This statuette was second only to “The Broncho Buster” (1986.81.2) in popularity, with some 100 casts produced before Remington’s original models were destroyed in 1921. The Metropolitan’s bronze is almost certainly a posthumous, unauthorized cast done by Roman Bronze Works.

Artist

Frederic Remington

Date

1905, revised 1908; this cast, before 1939

Medium

Bronze

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Bequest of Jacob Ruppert, 1939