Decade 1810-1819
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : George III Turner Ancient French painting Music in old painting Italian sculpture Mechanical craft ca 1800 French time pieces Tribal Oceania
See also : George III Turner Ancient French painting Music in old painting Italian sculpture Mechanical craft ca 1800 French time pieces Tribal Oceania
1805-1815 Napoléon's Diamond Brooch
2025 SOLD for CHF 3.5M by Sotheby's
A diamond brooch worn by Napoléon as a hat ornament was retrieved by Prussian soldiers in the abandoned carriage of his personal belongings in 1815 after the Waterloo battle and presented three days later to King Friedrich-Wilhelm III.
It is 45 mm in diameter and its central diamond weighing 13.04 carats is surrounded by two circles of mazarin cut diamonds.
It was sold for CHF 3.5M from a lower estimate of CHF 120K by Sotheby's on November 12, 2025, lot 665.
Asking Grok : What is the estimated creation date for that brooch and the assumptions for who was its jeweler ?
Grok thought :
The brooch, a diamond hat ornament later adapted into a brooch/pendant, has an estimated creation date in the early 19th century . It is assumed to have been crafted by Bernard Marguerite, who served as jeweler to the crown from 1811 to 1815 and had taken over the business of Edme-Marie Foncier (personal jeweler to the Beauharnais family, including Empress Josephine) in 1804. This assumption is based on records of Napoleon's 1805 orders for jewelry, including a ganse and hat button totaling 362,060 francs, with the largest stone (25 carats, paid 180,000 francs) supplied by Marguerite .
It is 45 mm in diameter and its central diamond weighing 13.04 carats is surrounded by two circles of mazarin cut diamonds.
It was sold for CHF 3.5M from a lower estimate of CHF 120K by Sotheby's on November 12, 2025, lot 665.
Asking Grok : What is the estimated creation date for that brooch and the assumptions for who was its jeweler ?
Grok thought :
The brooch, a diamond hat ornament later adapted into a brooch/pendant, has an estimated creation date in the early 19th century . It is assumed to have been crafted by Bernard Marguerite, who served as jeweler to the crown from 1811 to 1815 and had taken over the business of Edme-Marie Foncier (personal jeweler to the Beauharnais family, including Empress Josephine) in 1804. This assumption is based on records of Napoleon's 1805 orders for jewelry, including a ganse and hat button totaling 362,060 francs, with the largest stone (25 carats, paid 180,000 francs) supplied by Marguerite .
Diamond brooch Napoleon lost while fleeing Waterloo sells for $4.4 million at auction, Sotheby's says. https://t.co/EPc3uiYRk9
— CBS News (@CBSNews) November 13, 2025
1812 Boulevard du Temple by Boilly
2010 SOLD for $ 4.6M by Christie's
In those happy days when there was no television and no Internet, the entertainment was lived in the streets. Under the Empire, Paris recently awakened to the idea of freedom is a major place for social occupations, nice and varied, of which the painter Boilly is a passionate illustrator.
While the Palais-Royal is the place to go to fashion, Boulevard du Crime becomes the active center of entertainment and amusements. Its real name was Boulevard du Temple, but the Parisians had given it that nickname as a fun for the horrors that the theaters offered to good people.
Boilly observes a large crowd engaged in various activities in front of the entry of Café Turc, boulevard du Temple, in 1812. The costumes can not mistake on the time. This slice of Parisian life is an oil on canvas, 73 x 91 cm, sold for $ 4.6M from a lower estimate of $ 3M by Christie's on January 27, 2010.
Typical of its time, the Café Turc was both a place of tasting ice creams and exotic drinks, and a garden. Paris enjoyed during the next decades an intense development of dancing gardens, cafés concerts, theme parks and restaurants.
While the Palais-Royal is the place to go to fashion, Boulevard du Crime becomes the active center of entertainment and amusements. Its real name was Boulevard du Temple, but the Parisians had given it that nickname as a fun for the horrors that the theaters offered to good people.
Boilly observes a large crowd engaged in various activities in front of the entry of Café Turc, boulevard du Temple, in 1812. The costumes can not mistake on the time. This slice of Parisian life is an oil on canvas, 73 x 91 cm, sold for $ 4.6M from a lower estimate of $ 3M by Christie's on January 27, 2010.
Typical of its time, the Café Turc was both a place of tasting ice creams and exotic drinks, and a garden. Paris enjoyed during the next decades an intense development of dancing gardens, cafés concerts, theme parks and restaurants.
CANOVA
Intro
Specialist in marble, Antonio Canova sculpts figures and monuments of extreme quality. His final art is preceded by models in clay and plaster.
Through a process developed by the artist, the finish is beautiful and brilliant, reaching the delicacy of a real skin. Canova explained his method of passing a brush dipped in sanded water on the surface and then cleaning with a sponge. The marble remains natural without adding pigments.
The busts of young women suit very well the perfection reached by Canova. From 1811 he proposes to his clients his Ideal Heads (Teste Ideali) to which he usually attributes mythological, historical, literary or allegorical denominations. Some of them are presented to patrons whom he wishes to honor.
Through a process developed by the artist, the finish is beautiful and brilliant, reaching the delicacy of a real skin. Canova explained his method of passing a brush dipped in sanded water on the surface and then cleaning with a sponge. The marble remains natural without adding pigments.
The busts of young women suit very well the perfection reached by Canova. From 1811 he proposes to his clients his Ideal Heads (Teste Ideali) to which he usually attributes mythological, historical, literary or allegorical denominations. Some of them are presented to patrons whom he wishes to honor.
1
1813 Murat
2017 SOLD for € 4.3M by Christie's
During the Italian campaign, Joachim Murat was aide-de-camp to General Bonaparte. In 1797 he visited Antonio Canova in his studio in Rome. The young officer was dazzled by the work of the sculptor in the taste of antiquity. In 1801 he bought him two marble groups on the theme of Cupid and Psyche.
Joachim is a dandy who imagines himself perfectly matching the role of Cupid. In 1797 he seduced Napoléon's youngest sister, Caroline, who was only fifteen years old. His military feats are useful for Napoléon, and he can finally marry Caroline in 1800. Canova becomes the portrait sculptor of the Bonaparte family. The statue of Pauline Borghese, another sister of Napoléon, as a half naked Venus Victrix, finished in 1808, is famous.
At the height of his art, Canova begins his series of Ideal Heads in 1811. Murat becomes king of Naples in 1808. In 1813 he calls Canova to Naples to make his portrait and that of Caroline. The two plasters are kept in the museum of Possagno, the hometown of Canova. The artist returns to Rome to carve the marbles.
Neither of the two marbles had been seen. The portrait of King Joachim had been preserved by the Murat family. This 50 cm high bust in Carrara marble, fully conforming to the plaster, is mounted on a 16 cm high marble pedestal. It was sold for € 4.3M by Christie's on November 28, 2017, lot 714. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
This portrait is convincingly realistic. The face is proud, almost vain. The curls of hair are luxuriantly rendered. Canova used his secret polishing formula to give the skin a supple texture.
The marble portrait of Queen Caroline has not resurfaced.
Joachim is a dandy who imagines himself perfectly matching the role of Cupid. In 1797 he seduced Napoléon's youngest sister, Caroline, who was only fifteen years old. His military feats are useful for Napoléon, and he can finally marry Caroline in 1800. Canova becomes the portrait sculptor of the Bonaparte family. The statue of Pauline Borghese, another sister of Napoléon, as a half naked Venus Victrix, finished in 1808, is famous.
At the height of his art, Canova begins his series of Ideal Heads in 1811. Murat becomes king of Naples in 1808. In 1813 he calls Canova to Naples to make his portrait and that of Caroline. The two plasters are kept in the museum of Possagno, the hometown of Canova. The artist returns to Rome to carve the marbles.
Neither of the two marbles had been seen. The portrait of King Joachim had been preserved by the Murat family. This 50 cm high bust in Carrara marble, fully conforming to the plaster, is mounted on a 16 cm high marble pedestal. It was sold for € 4.3M by Christie's on November 28, 2017, lot 714. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
This portrait is convincingly realistic. The face is proud, almost vain. The curls of hair are luxuriantly rendered. Canova used his secret polishing formula to give the skin a supple texture.
The marble portrait of Queen Caroline has not resurfaced.
Antonio Canova’s sculpture of Joachim Murat sets a new #worldauctionrecord, selling for €4,320,000, quadrupling its pre-sale estimate @christiesparis. Learn more about the rediscovery here: https://t.co/deJWauBOVG pic.twitter.com/f2guocSu3d
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) November 30, 2017
2
1814 Peace
2018 SOLD for £ 5.3M by Sotheby's
In March 2012 a marble head is auctioned in London without identification of author, title and provenance. The buyer inspects it after the sale and identifies it as the Bust of Peace carved by Canova in 1814 while he was working on a full length statue on that theme for a Russian minister.
At this time the whole Europe is eager to end the Napoleonic wars. The Pope asks for help from Canova for the repatriation of looted art. The Bust of Peace is promised and then delivered by the artist to a British Lord involved in this project. The identification of the piece was lost by the descendants.
This bust 53 cm high including its white marble base was sold for £ 5.3M by Sotheby's on July 4, 2018, lot 25. The video below shows that its quality is real. It is surprising that no attribution was attempted in 2012.
At this time the whole Europe is eager to end the Napoleonic wars. The Pope asks for help from Canova for the repatriation of looted art. The Bust of Peace is promised and then delivered by the artist to a British Lord involved in this project. The identification of the piece was lost by the descendants.
This bust 53 cm high including its white marble base was sold for £ 5.3M by Sotheby's on July 4, 2018, lot 25. The video below shows that its quality is real. It is surprising that no attribution was attempted in 2012.
Lost masterpiece by Antonio Canova appears at auction https://t.co/X719YtNAgs pic.twitter.com/qnGsGCaFoM
— ArtDaily (@artdaily) May 29, 2018
3
1816-1817 Helen
2023 SOLD for £ 3.55M by Christie's
Antonio Canova began his series of Testi Ideali in 1811. In that year he carved a bust of Helen for a Contessa Albrizzi. The mythological princess of Troy wears a felt cap in the fashion of antique Greece over a beautiful curled hair. That egg shaped cap may be a reference to Helen's birth after her mother had been seduced by Zeus in the guise of a swan.
The artist carved three remakes of his Helen. One of them, ca 1816-1817, was presented by him to Lord Castlereagh, as a gratitude from the Lord's efforts to repatriate many artworks looted from Italy during the Napoleonic Wars. The bust is signed by Canova and dedicated to "vicecomiti Castelreghio viro prestantissimo", who was elevated to 2nd marquess of Londonderry in 1816.
Directly coming from the descent of the marquess, this marble bust was sold for £ 3.55M from a lower estimate of £ 2.5M by Christie's on July 6, 2023, lot 33. It is 62 cm high including the 12 cm marble socle.
The artist carved three remakes of his Helen. One of them, ca 1816-1817, was presented by him to Lord Castlereagh, as a gratitude from the Lord's efforts to repatriate many artworks looted from Italy during the Napoleonic Wars. The bust is signed by Canova and dedicated to "vicecomiti Castelreghio viro prestantissimo", who was elevated to 2nd marquess of Londonderry in 1816.
Directly coming from the descent of the marquess, this marble bust was sold for £ 3.55M from a lower estimate of £ 2.5M by Christie's on July 6, 2023, lot 33. It is 62 cm high including the 12 cm marble socle.
#AuctionUpdate #AntonioCanova's masterwork 'Bust of Helen' sold for £3,549,000. This spectacular marble bust depicts Helen of Troy, daughter of the god Zeus and known as the legendary beauty that famously 'launched a thousand ships': https://t.co/zlFedZPJcN pic.twitter.com/zxyVvNuekC
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) July 6, 2023
masterpiece
1814 La Grande Odalisque by Ingres
Louvre
Introduction to Orientalism in 19th-Century French Art
Orientalism in art refers to the depiction of the "Orient"—regions including present-day Turkey, Greece, the Middle East, and North Africa—by Western artists, particularly those from France during the 19th century. This movement emerged as part of the Romantic era, fueled by European fascination with exotic cultures, landscapes, and peoples. French artists played a central role, often portraying the East as a land of mystery, sensuality, violence, and backwardness, which served both artistic and ideological purposes, including support for imperialism. The trend was sparked by increased contact following Napoleon Bonaparte's 1798 invasion of Egypt, which lasted until 1801 and inspired waves of travelers, scholars, and artists. A key catalyst was the French government's publication of Description de l’Égypte (1809–22), a monumental 24-volume work documenting Egypt's architecture, monuments, natural history, and society, which profoundly influenced French aesthetics and popularized Egyptian motifs in Empire-style decorative arts.
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780–1867): Never traveling to the East, Ingres drew from literary and artistic precedents to create idealized, erotic odalisques (female slaves or concubines). His La Grande Odalisque (1814, Louvre) features a reclining nude with elongated proportions, blending classical beauty with exotic accessories like a turban and hookah, symbolizing sensual isolation. Works like Odalisque in Grisaille (ca. 1824–34) further explore these themes through monochromatic studies.
Introduction to Ingres's Orientalism
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, a leading figure in 19th-century French art, bridged Neoclassicism and Romanticism through his precise linear style and fascination with exotic subjects. His Orientalist works, inspired by European colonial encounters with the Near East—particularly after Napoleon's Egyptian campaign—often used "Oriental" settings as a pretext for exploring the female nude in erotic, passive contexts. These paintings drew from travel accounts, literary fantasies, and Ingres's imagination, as he never visited the regions he depicted. This approach reflected broader Orientalist tropes: portraying the East as mysterious, luxurious, and sexually indulgent, often to cater to Western male gazes and colonial narratives.
Ingres's Orientalist evolution is vividly traced from La Grande Odalisque (1814) to Le Bain Turc (1862), spanning nearly five decades. The earlier work focuses on a solitary, idealized figure, while the later one expands into a multifaceted, communal scene. Both emphasize sensuality, but the progression shows Ingres refining his motifs—such as elongated nudes, luxurious textiles, and harem interiors—into more complex compositions, blending academic precision with romantic exoticism.
La Grande Odalisque (1814)
Commissioned by Napoleon's sister Caroline Murat, La Grande Odalisque exemplifies Ingres's early foray into Orientalism. The painting depicts a reclining concubine (odalisque) in a harem, nude except for jewelry and a turban, gazing directly at the viewer over her shoulder. Her elongated spine—famously adding extra vertebrae for aesthetic effect—creates a serpentine curve, prioritizing ideal beauty over anatomical accuracy. Surrounding props like a peacock fan, hookah, and shimmering fabrics evoke opulence and indolence, symbolizing Western fantasies of Eastern excess.
Thematically, the work embodies Orientalism as a vehicle for eroticism: the odalisque's pose invites voyeurism, portraying her as sexually available yet passive, a "prize" in a colonialist lens. Ingres fused Neoclassical linearity (sharp contours, "licked" surfaces) with Romantic subject matter, rejecting moral instruction for sensual allure. Critics at the 1819 Salon decried its distortions as rebellious, but it captured the era's fascination with the "Orient" as a site of forbidden desire, uninformed by real Eastern cultures.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Orientalism in art refers to the depiction of the "Orient"—regions including present-day Turkey, Greece, the Middle East, and North Africa—by Western artists, particularly those from France during the 19th century. This movement emerged as part of the Romantic era, fueled by European fascination with exotic cultures, landscapes, and peoples. French artists played a central role, often portraying the East as a land of mystery, sensuality, violence, and backwardness, which served both artistic and ideological purposes, including support for imperialism. The trend was sparked by increased contact following Napoleon Bonaparte's 1798 invasion of Egypt, which lasted until 1801 and inspired waves of travelers, scholars, and artists. A key catalyst was the French government's publication of Description de l’Égypte (1809–22), a monumental 24-volume work documenting Egypt's architecture, monuments, natural history, and society, which profoundly influenced French aesthetics and popularized Egyptian motifs in Empire-style decorative arts.
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780–1867): Never traveling to the East, Ingres drew from literary and artistic precedents to create idealized, erotic odalisques (female slaves or concubines). His La Grande Odalisque (1814, Louvre) features a reclining nude with elongated proportions, blending classical beauty with exotic accessories like a turban and hookah, symbolizing sensual isolation. Works like Odalisque in Grisaille (ca. 1824–34) further explore these themes through monochromatic studies.
Introduction to Ingres's Orientalism
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, a leading figure in 19th-century French art, bridged Neoclassicism and Romanticism through his precise linear style and fascination with exotic subjects. His Orientalist works, inspired by European colonial encounters with the Near East—particularly after Napoleon's Egyptian campaign—often used "Oriental" settings as a pretext for exploring the female nude in erotic, passive contexts. These paintings drew from travel accounts, literary fantasies, and Ingres's imagination, as he never visited the regions he depicted. This approach reflected broader Orientalist tropes: portraying the East as mysterious, luxurious, and sexually indulgent, often to cater to Western male gazes and colonial narratives.
Ingres's Orientalist evolution is vividly traced from La Grande Odalisque (1814) to Le Bain Turc (1862), spanning nearly five decades. The earlier work focuses on a solitary, idealized figure, while the later one expands into a multifaceted, communal scene. Both emphasize sensuality, but the progression shows Ingres refining his motifs—such as elongated nudes, luxurious textiles, and harem interiors—into more complex compositions, blending academic precision with romantic exoticism.
La Grande Odalisque (1814)
Commissioned by Napoleon's sister Caroline Murat, La Grande Odalisque exemplifies Ingres's early foray into Orientalism. The painting depicts a reclining concubine (odalisque) in a harem, nude except for jewelry and a turban, gazing directly at the viewer over her shoulder. Her elongated spine—famously adding extra vertebrae for aesthetic effect—creates a serpentine curve, prioritizing ideal beauty over anatomical accuracy. Surrounding props like a peacock fan, hookah, and shimmering fabrics evoke opulence and indolence, symbolizing Western fantasies of Eastern excess.
Thematically, the work embodies Orientalism as a vehicle for eroticism: the odalisque's pose invites voyeurism, portraying her as sexually available yet passive, a "prize" in a colonialist lens. Ingres fused Neoclassical linearity (sharp contours, "licked" surfaces) with Romantic subject matter, rejecting moral instruction for sensual allure. Critics at the 1819 Salon decried its distortions as rebellious, but it captured the era's fascination with the "Orient" as a site of forbidden desire, uninformed by real Eastern cultures.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1814 Complication Watch by Breguet
2012 SOLD for CHF 4.3M by Christie's
A watchmaker is primarily a physicist. Nothing is simple for reaching the extreme precision required for time measuring scientific instruments. They have to deal with gravity, thermal expansion, and also the irregularities of the sun's apparent motion.
The eighteenth century had highly important mechanics. Abraham-Louis Breguet, micro-mechanical genius, settled into pocket watches the most extraordinary complications of the clocks, and was the inventor of basic concepts such as the tourbillon and the wristwatch.
On May 14, 2012, Christie's sold a Breguet watch for CHF 4.3M from a lower estimate of CHF 800K, lot 230.
This complication piece sold in 1814 has two main dials. It integrates two similar and symmetrical complete mechanisms. The idea of the inventor was to compensate the mechanical resonance, a source of error that was a challenge for the watchmakers. This is the first of three watches made by Breguet on this principle. The other two has been provided to the kings of England and France.
The eighteenth century had highly important mechanics. Abraham-Louis Breguet, micro-mechanical genius, settled into pocket watches the most extraordinary complications of the clocks, and was the inventor of basic concepts such as the tourbillon and the wristwatch.
On May 14, 2012, Christie's sold a Breguet watch for CHF 4.3M from a lower estimate of CHF 800K, lot 230.
This complication piece sold in 1814 has two main dials. It integrates two similar and symmetrical complete mechanisms. The idea of the inventor was to compensate the mechanical resonance, a source of error that was a challenge for the watchmakers. This is the first of three watches made by Breguet on this principle. The other two has been provided to the kings of England and France.
The Leuchtenberg Necklace
2014 SOLD for CHF 3.3M by Sotheby's
A Royal pearl necklace was sold for CHF 3.3M by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014, lot 431. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's before it was withdrawn on October 12, 2021, lot 1909.
This jewel has apparently not be recomposed since its creation. Its earliest picture is in 1820 while worn by the Wittelsbach Princess Augusta of Bavaria, Duchess of Leuchtenberg since 1817. It was transferred in 1823 to her daughter Joséphine de Beauharnais who was going to Sweden to marry Prince Oscar. In a 1837 group portrait, 'Josefina' wears this necklace and a pearl and cameo tiara. She became queen consort of Sweden in 1844.
The Leuchtenberg necklace is made of 105 natural pearls in two strands suspending seven detachable drop shaped natural pearls measuring from 9.5 x 9.5 x 13.8 mm to 14.1 x 14.8 x 21.2 mm. The seven big pearls are capped with rose diamonds and the clasp is set with a cushion shaped diamond.
Augusta had married Eugène de Beauharnais in 1806 when the son of Empress Joséphine was viceroy of Italy. The Empress used to provide magnificent jewels for the prestige of her daughter in law at the court of Milan. A make by Nitot father or son, the official jewelers of Napoléon, is probable in this case. Another assumption is that Eugène inherited the pearls in 1814 from the estate of his mother.
This jewel has apparently not be recomposed since its creation. Its earliest picture is in 1820 while worn by the Wittelsbach Princess Augusta of Bavaria, Duchess of Leuchtenberg since 1817. It was transferred in 1823 to her daughter Joséphine de Beauharnais who was going to Sweden to marry Prince Oscar. In a 1837 group portrait, 'Josefina' wears this necklace and a pearl and cameo tiara. She became queen consort of Sweden in 1844.
The Leuchtenberg necklace is made of 105 natural pearls in two strands suspending seven detachable drop shaped natural pearls measuring from 9.5 x 9.5 x 13.8 mm to 14.1 x 14.8 x 21.2 mm. The seven big pearls are capped with rose diamonds and the clasp is set with a cushion shaped diamond.
Augusta had married Eugène de Beauharnais in 1806 when the son of Empress Joséphine was viceroy of Italy. The Empress used to provide magnificent jewels for the prestige of her daughter in law at the court of Milan. A make by Nitot father or son, the official jewelers of Napoléon, is probable in this case. Another assumption is that Eugène inherited the pearls in 1814 from the estate of his mother.
Im Oktober versteigert Sotheby's in Hongkong ein historisch bedeutsames Collier, das einst den Hals der schwedischen Königin Josefina zierte. #schmuck #auktionen #royal #perlen
— Barnebys.de (@Barnebysde) September 30, 2021
1816 Temple of Jupiter by Turner
2009 SOLD for $ 13M by Sotheby's
An oil on canvas by Turner, 117 x 178 cm, was sold for $ 13M by Sotheby's on January 29, 2009, lot 92.
It is a temple of Jupiter Panellenius (ie friend of the Greeks). This painting is later (1816), but the composition is similar to that of 1808: an animated green leads to a remote monument, flooded with sunlight, which is the strong point of the image. The characters of the English villa were walkers. Those of the temple, dressed according to antique fashion, play a round dance.
Turner made only three paintings inspired by Greece. We must see the influence of the romantic come back to the antique (that at that time influenced also the cloth fashion) and not a political mood, as the movements that would lead to the independence of Greece were just beginning in 1816.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
It is a temple of Jupiter Panellenius (ie friend of the Greeks). This painting is later (1816), but the composition is similar to that of 1808: an animated green leads to a remote monument, flooded with sunlight, which is the strong point of the image. The characters of the English villa were walkers. Those of the temple, dressed according to antique fashion, play a round dance.
Turner made only three paintings inspired by Greece. We must see the influence of the romantic come back to the antique (that at that time influenced also the cloth fashion) and not a political mood, as the movements that would lead to the independence of Greece were just beginning in 1816.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
masterpiece
1818 Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer by Friedrich
Hamburg Kunsthalle
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
GERICAULT
1
1818 Portrait of the Dedreux Children
2009 SOLD for € 9M by Christie's
A pupil of Carle Vernet and Pierre-Narcisse Guérin, Théodore Géricault wanted to express excessive emotions. He chose as themes the officers on horseback of the Napoleonic Wars and the muscular male nudes in the style of Michelangelo.
The fall of the Empire opens a new phase, which culminates in 1819 with The Raft of the Medusa, a monumental work without mercy which symbolizes the true destiny of men, in a heroism devoid of meaning and hope.
In his workshop of the rue des Martyrs, Géricault regularly meets other artists including Carle and Horace Vernet, Delacroix and Dedreux-Dorcy. He makes a few portraits of the two children of Dedreux-Dorcy's brother.
In 1818 Géricault is forced against his will to take an interest in children. He could not recognize the birth of his son Georges-Hippolyte, the result of his incest with the wife of his uncle and declared as the son of the housemaid born from an unknown father.
The portrait of Alfred and Elise Dedreux is an oil on canvas 99 x 79 cm painted in 1818. The boy is 8 years old and the girl two years younger. They resemble each other and are similarly hairstyled and dressed. The girl is standing, dominating this scene.
At that time Géricault sought to convert into a neo-classical style. The double portrait is chilling. The gazes of the children are uncompromising for this world of adults in which they do not enter. The landscape behind them is arbitrary and unidentifiable. Two small flowers fall from the hand of the girl who pays no attention to them. This picture is a double tronie, anticipating by its psychological stiffness the studies of mental patients of the later period of the artist.
The young Alfred was passionate about the images of horses painted by Géricault. He will specialize in this theme under the name of Alfred de Dreux, thus usurping a noble particle.
The portrait of the Dedreux children remained in Elise's family until 1925. From the Saint-Laurent - Bergé collection, it was sold for € 9M from a lower estimate of € 4M by Christie's on February 23, 2009, lot 83. It was bought in that sale by Liliane Bettencourt. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The fall of the Empire opens a new phase, which culminates in 1819 with The Raft of the Medusa, a monumental work without mercy which symbolizes the true destiny of men, in a heroism devoid of meaning and hope.
In his workshop of the rue des Martyrs, Géricault regularly meets other artists including Carle and Horace Vernet, Delacroix and Dedreux-Dorcy. He makes a few portraits of the two children of Dedreux-Dorcy's brother.
In 1818 Géricault is forced against his will to take an interest in children. He could not recognize the birth of his son Georges-Hippolyte, the result of his incest with the wife of his uncle and declared as the son of the housemaid born from an unknown father.
The portrait of Alfred and Elise Dedreux is an oil on canvas 99 x 79 cm painted in 1818. The boy is 8 years old and the girl two years younger. They resemble each other and are similarly hairstyled and dressed. The girl is standing, dominating this scene.
At that time Géricault sought to convert into a neo-classical style. The double portrait is chilling. The gazes of the children are uncompromising for this world of adults in which they do not enter. The landscape behind them is arbitrary and unidentifiable. Two small flowers fall from the hand of the girl who pays no attention to them. This picture is a double tronie, anticipating by its psychological stiffness the studies of mental patients of the later period of the artist.
The young Alfred was passionate about the images of horses painted by Géricault. He will specialize in this theme under the name of Alfred de Dreux, thus usurping a noble particle.
The portrait of the Dedreux children remained in Elise's family until 1925. From the Saint-Laurent - Bergé collection, it was sold for € 9M from a lower estimate of € 4M by Christie's on February 23, 2009, lot 83. It was bought in that sale by Liliane Bettencourt. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
2
masterpiece
1818-1819 Le Radeau de la Méduse
Louvre
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Grok thoughts :
Quote
S. C. ANDERSON (SCA) @christianlexus Apr 12, 2020
Théodore Géricault, Le radeau de la Méduse (The Raft of the Medusa). Théodore Géricault, 1819 A massive oil on canvas in the Louvre & a tribute to both our species failings & endurance. Always fascinated by it but nevermore apropos than in these dark days where SOME find rescue.
Grok thoughts :
Quote
S. C. ANDERSON (SCA) @christianlexus Apr 12, 2020
Théodore Géricault, Le radeau de la Méduse (The Raft of the Medusa). Théodore Géricault, 1819 A massive oil on canvas in the Louvre & a tribute to both our species failings & endurance. Always fascinated by it but nevermore apropos than in these dark days where SOME find rescue.
- Géricault's 1819 painting "The Raft of the Medusa" immortalizes the 1816 wreck of the French frigate Méduse, where 147 survivors on a makeshift raft endured starvation and cannibalism due to the captain's incompetence, with only 15 rescued after 13 days, sparking public outrage against the Bourbon restoration.
- Posted in April 2020 during the COVID-19 onset, the artwork's portrayal of desperation and selective salvation resonates with pandemic inequities, as ventilator shortages and uneven aid distribution evoked similar themes of societal abandonment.
- In response to a thread on coveted artworks, the choice juxtaposes Turner's elegy for a fading era with Géricault's visceral indictment of human frailty, highlighting art's power to critique power structures amid crisis.
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< 1819 Hawaii Idol
2017 SOLD for € 6.3M by Christie's
The destruction of Hawaii's idols resulted from struggles for tribal power without the intervention of the European travelers.
When James Cook visits Hawaii in 1778, the territory is divided. He meets Kalani'opu'u, the king of Kona district. In the following year a violent quarrel with that king results in the murder of the captain. Kalani'opu'u died in 1782, leaving the political power to a son and the religious power to his nephew Kamehameha who thus became the high priest of the god of war Ku also known as Ku Ka'ili Moku.
With this terrifying support Kamehameha manages to conquer the entire territory of Hawaii and starts a dynasty that will last until 1872. He builds for Ku large temples populated by statues with various ritual roles.
A complex social system named Kapu based on taboos protected the elites against middlemen and slaves. When Kamehameha dies an octogenarian in 1819 his favorite wife becomes queen and regent. Women had in the Kapu a subsidiary role that did not please the new regent. She forces the young Kamehameha II to abolish Kapu and to destroy temples and idols. English travelers will manage in the 1820s to collect a few pieces that escaped the iconoclasts, so being the ultimate symbols of a frightening pagan mythology.
A 53 cm high statuette of Ku made during the reign of Kamehameha I was sold for € 6.3M by Christie's on November 21, 2017, lot 153. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. It had been detached from a column on which it had served as a guardian in a temple or a necropolis.
The head is oversized above the muscular body whose attitude is powerful. The broad mouth shaped as a horizontal eight is fitted with teeth throughout its perimeter in an expression of total ferocity that suited Kamehameha I's ambitions.
When James Cook visits Hawaii in 1778, the territory is divided. He meets Kalani'opu'u, the king of Kona district. In the following year a violent quarrel with that king results in the murder of the captain. Kalani'opu'u died in 1782, leaving the political power to a son and the religious power to his nephew Kamehameha who thus became the high priest of the god of war Ku also known as Ku Ka'ili Moku.
With this terrifying support Kamehameha manages to conquer the entire territory of Hawaii and starts a dynasty that will last until 1872. He builds for Ku large temples populated by statues with various ritual roles.
A complex social system named Kapu based on taboos protected the elites against middlemen and slaves. When Kamehameha dies an octogenarian in 1819 his favorite wife becomes queen and regent. Women had in the Kapu a subsidiary role that did not please the new regent. She forces the young Kamehameha II to abolish Kapu and to destroy temples and idols. English travelers will manage in the 1820s to collect a few pieces that escaped the iconoclasts, so being the ultimate symbols of a frightening pagan mythology.
A 53 cm high statuette of Ku made during the reign of Kamehameha I was sold for € 6.3M by Christie's on November 21, 2017, lot 153. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. It had been detached from a column on which it had served as a guardian in a temple or a necropolis.
The head is oversized above the muscular body whose attitude is powerful. The broad mouth shaped as a horizontal eight is fitted with teeth throughout its perimeter in an expression of total ferocity that suited Kamehameha I's ambitions.
La vente de la collection d'art tribal de Pierre Vérité a rencontré un grand succès hier soir, avec l'adjudication d'une statuette de divinité hawaïenne pour 6 345 000 euros #ArtTribal #CollectionVerite #ChristiesParis #AuctionResult pic.twitter.com/eCLJpiQgx4
— Christie's Paris (@christiesparis) November 22, 2017
