Napoleon Bonaparte
artist
François-Séraphin Delpech
(Paris, 1778 - 1825, Paris)
subject
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French
(Ajaccio, 1769 - 1821, Saint Helena)
Dateabout 1820
Place MadeParis, Ile-de-France, France, Europe
MediumLithograph
Dimensions27.3 x 18.1 cm (10 3/4 x 7 1/8 in.)
ClassificationsPrints
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberP17s6
eMuseum ID725143
EmbARK ObjectID12279
TMS Source ID1412
Last Updated8/9/24
Status
Not on viewWeb CommentaryWhile attending finishing school in Paris during the 1850s, Isabella Stewart Gardner was captivated by French literature, culture, and history. Of particular note is her interest in the former French emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte. Isabella acquired this lithograph of Napoleon Bonaparte sometime before 1915, and displayed it with several other Napoleon-related souvenirs. The maker, François-Séraphin Delpech, was a renowned artist, lithographer, and art critic during the First French Empire and produced numerous lithographic portraits of leading figures of that time period.
BibliographyNotesGilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), pp. 133.
“Notes, Records, Comments.” Gardner Museum Calendar of Events 9, no. 42 (19 Jun. 1966), p. 2.
Kathleen King,"Relics of an Emperor: Napoleon Bonaparte," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 9 August 2022, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/relics-emperor-napoleon-bonaparte-gardner-museum
“Notes, Records, Comments.” Gardner Museum Calendar of Events 9, no. 42 (19 Jun. 1966), p. 2.
Kathleen King,"Relics of an Emperor: Napoleon Bonaparte," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 9 August 2022, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/relics-emperor-napoleon-bonaparte-gardner-museum
MarksNotesInscribed in stone (underneath bust): "Bonaparte"
Inscribed in stone (right side of bust): "Lith. de Delpech."
Facsimile signature in stone (lower center): "Bonaparte" [hand of François-Séraphin Delpech]
Numbered in stone (lower center): "28."
Inscribed in stone (right side of bust): "Lith. de Delpech."
Facsimile signature in stone (lower center): "Bonaparte" [hand of François-Séraphin Delpech]
Numbered in stone (lower center): "28."
ProvenanceNotesEntered Isabella Stewart Gardner's collection by 1915.
