Op zijn schild leunende soldaat rust uit

About this artwork

blindstempel, recto, gepreegd: Lugt 36a

Art Historical Context

Adolphe Mouilleron’s lithograph “Op zijn schild leunende soldaat rust uit” captures a solitary soldier pausing in quiet repose, his weight resting against a large shield. Created between 1851 and 1862, the print exemplifies the Romantic interest in individual emotion and the human side of military life that flourished the decades after the Napole Wars. Mouiller, a skilled French lith, specialized in translating and drawings into prints that could reach wider audiences. Lithography was prized in the mid-nineteenth century for its ability to reproduce the subtle gradations of tone and texture found in original drawings. Measuring 446 by 312 millimeters, this impression retains a blind stamp (Lugt 36a) on the recto, a mark that identifies its passage through an important private collection and underscores the value placed on such prints by nineteenth-century connoisseurs. Today the work viewers a tangible link to both the technical innovations of early lithography and the period’s fascination with the everyday experience of soldiers, inviting reflection on themes of rest, duty, and memory that remain resonant.

About the Artist

Adolphe Mouilleron · 1820–1881

Adolphe Mouilleron (1820–1881) was a French painter and lithographer whose significant contributions to French printmaking and co-founding role in the artists' collective 'Les Artistes Contemporains' made him an important figure in mid-19th-century Parisian art. Born in Paris on December 20, 1820, Mouilleron achieved recognition through both his original lithographs and paintings, earning multiple...