The French Soldier (Le Soldat français)
Medium
lithograph
Dimensions
image: 46.8 × 34 cm · sheet: 57.4 × 41.8 cm
Classification
Department
Prints
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of John Bonebrake
Accession Number
2009.519
Tags
male
About this artwork
Lithography was invented in 1798 by the German Aloys Senefelder. Although the technique was introduced in France in 1801, it was predominantly used for commercial ventures until 1815 when lithographic workshops—like that of François Delpech, who printed The French Soldier—were established in Paris. In 1814 Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated the throne and was banished to the island of Elba before being permanently exiled on Saint Helena. With the ensuing void in leadership, an idealized version of the...