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Old Masters (before 1870)

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RARE ET IMPORTANTE GRAVURE DE LA BATAILLE D’EYLAU Pietro ANDERLONI (1785-1849), d’après Antonio Raffaele CALLIANO (1785-c. 1824). - Napoleone il Grande vistendo il campo dopo la battaglia d'Eylau. Etching, 1810. H. 68 x W. 106 cm (as seen). In a large giltwood frame (chips). H. 86 x W. 126 cm. Historical Extremely rare print depicting a famous episode in Napoleon's epic, the Emperor on the battlefield of Eylau. This half-hearted victory, in which many soldiers lost their lives, was the subject of a propaganda campaign designed to control public perception. A precise iconographic program was drawn up by Vivant-Denon to show Napoleon directing the care and rescue of the wounded in the aftermath of the battle. A sketching competition was held at the Louvre in 1807, and was won by Baron Gros, who produced his famous painting 'Napoléon visite le champ de bataille d'Eylau, 9 février 1807' (ill. 1). This subject, which inspired a number of painters, was also taken up in Italy, notably by Antonio Raffaele Calliano, a veteran of Napoleonic subjects, who in 1804 submitted a 'Battle of Marengo' that won him a scholarship to complete his training in Rome at the Académie Saint-Luc. His 'Napoleon Visiting the Battlefield of Eylau' was certainly completed around 1808-1809, and is a work marked by neoclassicism, in which military uniforms coexist with the heroic nudity of soldiers on the ground. The work was engraved by Pietro Anderloni in 1810. This etching, most likely produced for the high dignitaries of the Milan royal court, was printed in a very limited number of proofs. To our knowledge, only two other copies are known to exist (see below). Related works - Antoine-Jean Gros, Napoleon visiting the battlefield of Eylau, February 9, 1807, 1808, Musée du Louvre, inv. 5067 (ill. 1). - Pietro Andeloni (engraver), after Antonio Raffaele Calliano, Napoleone il Grande vistendo il campo dopo la bataglia d'Eylau, 1810, British Museum, inv. 1862,0614.1624. - Pietro Andeloni (engraver), after Antonio Raffaele Calliano, Napoleone il Grande vistendo il campo dopo la bataglia d'Eylau, Osenat sale November 20, 2016, lot 409 (sold for €5,000). Literature A. Roccavilla, L'arte nel Biellese, Rinaldo Allara, Biella, 1905, p. 73.

Estim. 800 - 1,200 EUR

Anne-Louis GIRODET-TRIOSON (Montargis, 1767-Paris, 1824), d’après. - Portrait of Napoleon in the uniform of the Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde. Oil on canvas. H. 61 x W. 46 cm. In a gilded wood frame with palmettes. Related works - Girodet, Napoleon receiving the keys to Vienna (...). 1806-1808. 380 x 532 cm. Musée de Versailles, MV 1549 (ill. 1). - Girodet, Unfinished Portrait of Napoleon. 1806-1808. 45.5 x 29 cm. Musée Bonnat, Bayonne, inv. 64 (ill. 2). History Girodet's original work was commissioned by the Emperor to decorate the Galerie de Diane in the Tuileries. It was part of a series of paintings ordered by decree on March 3, 1806, to commemorate the high points of Napoleon's epic. It was Denon who drew up the list of works, most of which illustrate the glorious German and Austrian campaigns of 1805, requiring the paintings to be completed for the Salon of 1808. Among the important works, Gautherot was commissioned to depict the Emperor haranguing the 2nd Corps at Augsburg, Hennequin the defeated Austrian army at Ulm, Taunay the entry into Munich, Girodet the entry into Vienna, Lejeune and Bâcler d'Albe the bivouacs on the eve of battle, and Gérard a scene from the battle of Austerlitz. Here, Girodet offers a fine portrait of Napoleon, a sketch of whose famous profile was rediscovered at the end of the 19th century by the collector Léon Bonnat. The Emperor's characteristic silhouette, surrounded by Murat, Bessières and Berthier, occupies a central position, facing the submissive Austrian representatives presenting the keys to the city of Vienna. This very classical composition was much appreciated by Napoleon, and contrasts with the artist's usually more heroic style, so admired by Romantic painters. Later, in 1812, Girodet was commissioned to depict the Emperor in his coronation "grand habillement" for the various courts of justice of the Empire. As for the painting of Napoleon in Vienna, which was moved for a time to avoid offending Empress Marie-Louise's sensibilities, it was revived under Louis-Philippe and placed in the historical museum of the Château de Versailles.

Estim. 600 - 800 EUR