Papal Promenade Along The Saône
Medium
Etching with drypoint and roulette; third state of three
Dimensions
Sheet: 12 13/16 × 18 1/4 in. (32.5 × 46.3 cm) Plate: 12 3/16 × 16 7/8 in. (31 × 42.8 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of James David Draper, 2000
Accession Number
2000.361.32
Tags
Art Historical Context
In 1805, French printmaker Jean-Jacques de Boissieu captured a majestic riverside procession in *Papal Promenade Along the Saône*, an etching that evokes the grandeur of early 19th-century France. The scene unfolds along the Saône River in Lyon—Boissieu's hometown—depicting a papal barge gliding through the water, surrounded by boats and spectators. This third and final state of the print reflects a pivotal moment: likely Pope Pius VII's visit to Lyon that year, during his travels amid the Napoleonic era, blending religious pomp with the era's political tensions. Boissieu, a master of intrica...
About the Artist
Jean Jacques de Boissieu · 1736–1810
French, Lyons 1736–1810 Lyons