Lot Essay
Carlo Bossoli was born near Lugano Italy and raised in the port city of Odessa. A master draftsman, he worked as official painter to Queen Victoria to record the details of the Crimean war. Bossoli travelled extensively and from these voyages painted views of Venice, Constantinople, Moscow and Paris. Aside from his landscapes he was the author of some 500 ink drawings of political and military scenes.
If the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris is the symbolic and spiritual center of France, the symbolic center of French power is undoubtedly the Place de La Concorde. Reaching out over a 21 acre site, the square was designed by Jacques Ange Gabriel in 1755 as a backdrop for an equestrian sculpture of Louis XV, the 'Well Beloved'. By 1792, the royal statue had been toppled and the Place Louis XV became the Place de la Revolution. Louis XVI was beheaded here and blood from the guillotine filled the square for two years until the regime of the Directory ended the reign of terror and rebaptised the site "Concorde". The square was finally completed by Louis Philippe in 1854 and it is this final version that is captured in this beautifully detailed work by Carlo Bossoli.
The Place de la Concorde was designed to impress - originally a testimony to the 18th century splendor of the absolute monarchy. Virtually all of the buildings and monuments in view here are potent symbols of French prestige - whether monarchist, imperial or republican. Across the bridge on the left is the Palais Bourbon that now houses the National Assembly. Originally built in 1728 for the Duchesse de Bourbon, daughter of Louis XIV, the facade - the only part clearly visible - was redone by Napoleon in the Greek revival style. Napoleon's shadow looms over the left bank with the dome of the Invalides where he finally buried in 1840
The Obelisk pulls the viewer's gaze up through the Arc de Triomphe which presides over the Champs Elysées as the quintessential monument to Napoleon's victories in battle.
The Egyptian obelisk in the center - the near twin of Cleopatra's needle in London was a gift from Mohammed Ali, Viceroy of Egypt. Originally given to Charles X, the obelisk arrived in Paris 4 years later under the rule of Louis Philippe. Its arrival at the Concorde resolved - by circumventing - a thorny political question of just which monument would take center stage, that of the monarchy or that of a republic. The fountains on either side of the ancient obelisk represent Maritime Navigation and River Navigation and their nymphs and river gods are replicated from those in the fountains of St. Peter's in Rome.
The palaces that flank the rue Royal to the right of the picture were also designed by Gabriel, one for the Count of Crillon. The other one (the 'Hotel de la Marine') houses the admiralty and it was here that the "Treaty of Friendship and Trade" was signed between France and the 13 independent States of America. In 1783, one of the signers, Benjamin Franklin, was amongst the thousands of spectators to witness one of the very first hot air balloons as it rose in its maiden flight above the Place de La Concorde.
The winged horses at the entrance to the Tuilerie Gardens in the foreground of the picture mirror the famous "Chevaux de marly" at the bottom of the Champs Elysées. Sculpted by Coustou for Louis XIV's Chateau in Marly, they were bought by Napoleon (after the chateau was destroyed during the revolution) to Paris in a specially designed trailer that needed 16 horses to pull it. Also titled "Africans Mastering the Numidian Horses" they are another monument to Napoleon and testimony to the domination by France over her colonies, just as the fountains and the admirality remind us of her rule of the sea.
This watercolor, perhaps commissioned by Princess Eugenie, is a fascinating window into France under the reign of Louis Philippe. Dated 1853, the picture celebrates the completion of this square so replete with the echoes of French history. It also provides an idyllic image of the Parisian bourgoise admiring the parade of military power and the precision of the Garde Republicane. The one note of disorder in this pristine view, the overturned chair, is like the Revolution of 1848, just behind them, and they turn their backs to it, enjoying instead the orderly ritual of the Sunday promenade.
If the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris is the symbolic and spiritual center of France, the symbolic center of French power is undoubtedly the Place de La Concorde. Reaching out over a 21 acre site, the square was designed by Jacques Ange Gabriel in 1755 as a backdrop for an equestrian sculpture of Louis XV, the 'Well Beloved'. By 1792, the royal statue had been toppled and the Place Louis XV became the Place de la Revolution. Louis XVI was beheaded here and blood from the guillotine filled the square for two years until the regime of the Directory ended the reign of terror and rebaptised the site "Concorde". The square was finally completed by Louis Philippe in 1854 and it is this final version that is captured in this beautifully detailed work by Carlo Bossoli.
The Place de la Concorde was designed to impress - originally a testimony to the 18th century splendor of the absolute monarchy. Virtually all of the buildings and monuments in view here are potent symbols of French prestige - whether monarchist, imperial or republican. Across the bridge on the left is the Palais Bourbon that now houses the National Assembly. Originally built in 1728 for the Duchesse de Bourbon, daughter of Louis XIV, the facade - the only part clearly visible - was redone by Napoleon in the Greek revival style. Napoleon's shadow looms over the left bank with the dome of the Invalides where he finally buried in 1840
The Obelisk pulls the viewer's gaze up through the Arc de Triomphe which presides over the Champs Elysées as the quintessential monument to Napoleon's victories in battle.
The Egyptian obelisk in the center - the near twin of Cleopatra's needle in London was a gift from Mohammed Ali, Viceroy of Egypt. Originally given to Charles X, the obelisk arrived in Paris 4 years later under the rule of Louis Philippe. Its arrival at the Concorde resolved - by circumventing - a thorny political question of just which monument would take center stage, that of the monarchy or that of a republic. The fountains on either side of the ancient obelisk represent Maritime Navigation and River Navigation and their nymphs and river gods are replicated from those in the fountains of St. Peter's in Rome.
The palaces that flank the rue Royal to the right of the picture were also designed by Gabriel, one for the Count of Crillon. The other one (the 'Hotel de la Marine') houses the admiralty and it was here that the "Treaty of Friendship and Trade" was signed between France and the 13 independent States of America. In 1783, one of the signers, Benjamin Franklin, was amongst the thousands of spectators to witness one of the very first hot air balloons as it rose in its maiden flight above the Place de La Concorde.
The winged horses at the entrance to the Tuilerie Gardens in the foreground of the picture mirror the famous "Chevaux de marly" at the bottom of the Champs Elysées. Sculpted by Coustou for Louis XIV's Chateau in Marly, they were bought by Napoleon (after the chateau was destroyed during the revolution) to Paris in a specially designed trailer that needed 16 horses to pull it. Also titled "Africans Mastering the Numidian Horses" they are another monument to Napoleon and testimony to the domination by France over her colonies, just as the fountains and the admirality remind us of her rule of the sea.
This watercolor, perhaps commissioned by Princess Eugenie, is a fascinating window into France under the reign of Louis Philippe. Dated 1853, the picture celebrates the completion of this square so replete with the echoes of French history. It also provides an idyllic image of the Parisian bourgoise admiring the parade of military power and the precision of the Garde Republicane. The one note of disorder in this pristine view, the overturned chair, is like the Revolution of 1848, just behind them, and they turn their backs to it, enjoying instead the orderly ritual of the Sunday promenade.