Standing Soldier Holding a Rolled Flag
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Image: 4 3/16 × 3 1/16 in. (10.6 × 7.8 cm) Plate: 4 3/4 × 3 1/2 in. (12.1 × 8.9 cm) Sheet: 5 3/16 × 3 3/4 in. (13.1 × 9.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 2018
Accession Number
2018.52.4
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the intimate etching *Standing Soldier Holding a Rol Flag*, Philippe Jacques detherbourg captures a poised military figure clutching a furled banner, evoking the disciplined resolve of 18th-century soldiery. Created between 1755 and 1771, this small-scale print (image measuring just 4 3/16 × 3 1/16 inches) exemplifies Loutherbourg's early mastery as a draftsman and printmaker. Born in Strasbourg in 1740, he trained in Paris before moving to London, where he became renowned for dramatic battle scenes and Romantic landscapes infused with theatrical energy. This work, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, reflects his fascination with martial subjects during a turbulent era. Etching, Loutherbourg's chosen medium here, allowed for precise, expressive lines etched into a metal plate with acid, enabling multiple impressions from a single plate—a revolutionary technique for disseminating detailed imagery to a wider audience beyond oil paintings. The modest plate and sheet sizes suggest it was designed for collectors' albums or portfolios, making grand military iconography accessible in private spaces. Amid the Seven Years' War (1756–63) and ongoing European conflicts, such depictions of soldiers symbolized national pride and the human cost of empire. Loutherbourg's meticulous rendering of uniform details and stance highlights etching's potential for subtle texture and narrative depth, inviting visitors to ponder the personal stories behind the parade-ground posture.
About the Artist
Philippe Jacques de Loutherbourg · 1740–1812
Philippe Jacques de Loutherbourg, born in Strasbourg in 1740 to a Swiss miniaturist and engraver, initially pursued studies at the University of Strasbourg for the Lutheran ministry before turning decisively to art. In 1755, he moved to Paris, where he studied under the history painter Charles-André van Loo and the battle specialist Francesco Giuseppe Casanova, later training with engraver Jean-Ge...