Footnotes

Provenance
Carnegie Robert Jervis, 3rd Viscount St Vincent (1825–1879)
John Leveson Jervis, 4th Viscount St Vincent (1850–1885)
Carnegie Parker Jervis, 5th Viscount St Vincent (1855–1908)
Ronald Clarges Jervis, 6th Viscount St Vincent (1859–1940)
Ronald James Jervis, 7th Viscount St Vincent (1905–2006)
Edward Jervis, 8th Viscount St Vincent (1951–2023), and by descent to the present owners

Renowned French animalier Pierre-Jules Mêne (1810–1879) first exhibited the wax version of this model at the Paris Salon of 1863. The original wax version is now in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Reims. He exhibited the bronze a year later, and later editions were also cast by the Mêne-Cain workshop, Barbedienne, and Susse Frères. It was also cast in a smaller size (Jockey à Cheval No. 2).

The bronze equestrian sculpture Jockey à Cheval No. 1 by Mêne has traditionally been identified as representing the celebrated British racehorse Caractacus, winner of the 1862 Derby.

Caractacus (1859–1878) was a British-bred Thoroughbred best remembered for winning the 1862 Epsom Derby, which featured the largest field in the race's history, with 34 runners. Bred by William Blenkiron and sired by Kingston out of the mare Defenceless, Caractacus showed little promise early in his career and was often ridden by a young stable boy, John Parsons. When the original jockey declined to ride, Parsons, just 16 years old, took the mount and secured a narrow victory in the Derby, defying expectations.

The race was marked by several false starts and a near disqualification due to Parsons being underweight, but Caractacus held on to win by a neck. This was his final race, as injury forced his retirement shortly afterwards. He stood at stud in Britain until 1873 before being exported to Russia, where he died in 1878. Despite his classic success, Caractacus was not a notable sire.

A later label affixed to the underside of the present cast, however, along with longstanding family tradition, identifies the subject as the British racehorse Lord Clifden (1860–1875). While this identification departs from the generally accepted attribution, it may reflect a parallel or alternative reading of the sculpture's subject, particularly in light of the sculpture's descent through the Jervis family, who were closely connected to Lord Clifden.

Lord Clifden was a distinguished British Thoroughbred, foaled a year before Caractacus, and enjoyed an equally notable career. Bred by J. A. Hind and later purchased by Carnegie Robert John Jervis, 3rd Viscount St Vincent, in whose family the sculpture has remained, Lord Clifden was undefeated as a two-year-old. He famously lost the 1863 Derby by a short head before staging an extraordinary comeback to win the St Leger that same year. His dramatic racing style and widespread popularity made him a well-known figure in Britain and beyond.

Notably, Lord Clifden was sent to Paris in 1863, the same year Mêne dated his initial model, to compete in the Grand Prix de Paris at Longchamp, then France's most prestigious race. Although he finished fifth, his performance attracted considerable attention, including from Emperor Napoleon III, and helped foster growing Anglo-French interest in international racing. His brief but publicised appearance in France may have brought him to Mêne's attention, whose oeuvre often drew upon contemporary equine subjects of transnational fame.

According to family tradition, the Jervis descendants originally believed their cast of Jockey à Cheval No. 1 to be a unique or specially commissioned piece and regarded other known examples as unauthorised copies. However, this belief is at odds with Mêne's well-documented business practice. As a commercially minded sculptor, Mêne routinely produced multiple casts of his models in varying sizes and editions, capitalising on the popularity of his work to maximise profit. Jockey à Cheval No. 1 was no exception; multiple casts are known to exist in both France and Britain, demonstrating that it was intended for broader distribution rather than as a singular commission.

While there is no definitive evidence to support a reattribution, it is worth noting an anomaly in the suggestion, as the jockey riding Lord Clifden at Longchamp in 1863 was actually Tom Chaloner, not Johnny Osborne, as stated on the paper label attached to the base of the present cast—though Osborne did ride Lord Clifden slightly later back in England. Nevertheless, the sculpture's family provenance and its contextual history raise the possibility that Lord Clifden may have served as an inspiration or alternative reference for Mêne's model. In this light, the sculpture might be viewed as a work open to dual interpretations—reflecting either the symbolic triumph of Caractacus or the celebrated career of Lord Clifden.

Related literature
M. Poletti & A. Richarme, Pierre Jules Mêne Catalogue Raisonné, p. 43.