Almost wordless:
“Le triomphe de 1810”
Can you guess what this is and where?
Answers below
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Next Monday, France Book Tours presents The Conversation: The Night Napoleon Changed The World, by Jean d’Ormesson.
So to announce this tour with a picture, I share a picture I took 2 years ago.
Yes, this is Napoleon, and you can found this sculptured high relief on the lower section of the southeast pillar of the Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile, facing Avenue de Champs-Élysées.
It is also called Napoleon’s Triumph and was executed by Jean-Pierre Cortot.
It depicts Napoleon, crowned by Victory, in antique vestments pressing a sword against his chest.
In the background, to the right, a profiled kneeling man symbolizes a prisoner enchained at the feet of the victor.
To the left, an allegory of a city, with a crenelated crown, kneels before the conqueror whose protective hands extends over her.
Behind, the Muse of History inscribes on a tablet the memorable events of Napoléon’s reign.
Above, sounding a trumpet and bearing a standard, winged Fame soars across a palm tree, an image evoking the Egyptian expedition.
The scene illustrates the year 1810, the date of the apogee of Napoléon’s reign, his marriage to Marie-Louise of Austria to assure the future of the dynasty, and conquests which expanded the Empire to the maximum.
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November 27, 2013
WordsAndPeace
France Book Tours 