L'ancien Louvre
1865 - 1866
Medium
etching
Dimensions
164; 387; 267; 267
About this artwork
collector's mark: Lugt 2760
Art Historical Context
**L'ancien Louvre** (1865–1866) is a captivating etching by Charles Mery, a master of 19th-century French print renowned for his meticulous views of Paris. Measuring 164 × 267 mm, this work captures the historic facade of the old Louvre Palace, a symbol of royal grandeur from the Renaissance era. Meryon, often called the "Rembrandt of Paris," belonged to the Romantic etching revival, blending precise architectural detail with atmospheric depth to evoke the city's fading past. Created amid Baron Haussmann's sweeping urban renovations under Napoleon III, the print preserves the "ancien Louvre" ...
About the Artist
Charles Meryon · 1821–1868
Charles Meryon, born on November 23, 1821, in Paris, was the illegitimate son of English physician Dr. Charles Lewis Meryon and dancer Pierre-Narcisse Chaspoux (stage name Narcisse Gentil) at the Paris Opéra. His half-sister Fanny, from his mother's prior relationship with Viscount Lowther, remained in contact after their mother's death in 1838. Raised partly outside Paris before attending Pension...