Galerie
Napoléon
- Paris - Collection of the Optical Views

Optical view of the courtyard of the City Hall in Paris in 1789 (France)
Early XIXth century optical view in original watercolors. Original copper plate engraving on laid paper heightened with watercolor at that time. Published by Basset in Paris circa 1820

19th Century optical view in original watercolors of the courtyard of the City Hall in Paris in 1789 (France)
Free Passepartout (available in 23 shades)
  • 201
  • 202
  • 203
  • 204
  • 205
  • 206
  • 207
  • 208
  • 209
  • 210
  • 211
  • 212
  • 213
  • 214
  • 215
  • 216
  • 217
  • 218
  • 219
  • 220
  • 221
  • 222
  • 223
182019th Century
  • Date : circa 1820
  • Century : 19th Century
  • Period : Louis XVIII
  • Technique : Strong water etching
  • Paper : Laid paper
  • Publisher : Basset
  • Place of publication : Paris
  • Passepartout : 50.0 x 65.0 cm
  • Sheet : 32.0 x 46.0 cm
  • Plate : 27.0 x 40.0 cm
  • Inventory N° : FR-03589
500€
(Frame not included)
  • Certificate of authenticity
  • Passepartout included
  • Portfolio exacompta
  • Free shipping costs
  • Shipment within 24H
  • Online tracking

Original title

COUR DE L'HOTEL DE VILLE DE PARIS, EN 1789.

Mentions

A Paris chez Hocquart rue St. Jacques N° 64.

Description

Early XIXth century optical view in original watercolors. Original copper plate engraving on laid paper heightened with watercolor at that time. Published by Basset in Paris circa 1820, depicting a view of the courtyard of the City Hall in Paris in 1789 (France).

During the 18th Century, several renowned establishments in Paris, London (England), Augsburg (Germany) and Bassano (Italy) were specialized in the creation of these optical views. They could be viewed alone or through a zograscope, a wooden foot surmounted by a lens which enlarged the image and accentuated the perspective effect. They could also be placed in optical boxes, the spectator then looked inside the box through the lens. This distraction was greatly appreciated in the 18th Century in the salons of the bourgeoisie and the nobility as in the countryside thanks to the hawkers.

These etchings are nowadays exhibited in museums around the world and extremely appreciated by collectors and decorators for their historical interest and their high decorative value.

Museums & Archives

The Musée Carnavalet (Paris, France) owns a copy of this optical view in its collections. For more details on this print please consult the site : Cour de l'hotel de ville de paris, en 1789.

Condition report

  • Stain in the top margin
  • Applied on cardboard

This strong water etching is listed in these categories :

City Hall of Paris

In July 1357, Étienne Marcel, provost of the merchants of Paris, bought the so-called maison aux piliers in the name of the municipality on the gently sloping shingle beach which served as a river port for unloading wheat and wood and later merged into a square, the Place de Grève, a place where Parisians often gathered, particularly for public executions. Ever since 1357, the City of Paris's administration has been located on the same location where the Hôtel de Ville stands today.

In 1533, King Francis I decided to endow the city with a city hall which would be worthy of Paris, then the largest city of Europe and Christendom. He appointed two architects: Italian Dominique de Cortone, nicknamed Boccador because of his red beard, and Frenchman Pierre Chambiges. The House of Pillars was torn down and Boccador, steeped in the spirit of the Renaissance, drew up the plans of a building which was at the same time tall, spacious, full of light and refined. Building work was not finished until 1628 during the reign of Louis XIII.

During the next two centuries, no changes were made to the edifice which was the stage for several famous events during the French Revolution (notably the murder of the last provost of the merchants Jacques de Flesselles by an angry crowd on 14 July 1789 and the coup of 9 Thermidor Year II when Robespierre was shot in the jaw and arrested in the Hôtel de Ville with his followers).

The facade is decorated with illustrious figures from the city of Paris.

The Optical View

The Galerie Napoléon is pleased to propose to you this strong water etching printed 204 years ago (around 1820).

As for all the antique prints in our catalogue, this optical view COUR DE L'HOTEL DE VILLE DE PARIS, EN 1789. datant de 1820 is dispatched worldwide within 24H in a Secured packaging, accompanied by its certificate of authenticity guaranteeing the name of the artists (draughtsman, engraver, editor), the impression process used (Strong water) and its date (1820).

In order to guarantee a perfect conservation in time, this strong water etching is dispatched, ready to be framed, under museum quality color passepartout (manufactured without acid in the pulp for a neutral pH) on a cream mountboard made from carton bois (also acid free & neutral pH), in a luxurious portfolio.

History of the Optical views

At the apogee of the mode for optical views, between 1750 and 1790, four European cities specialized in their edition: Paris (France), London (England), Augsburg (Germany) and Bassano (Italy).

Optical views are prized in very different social circles : pleasant recreation in aristocratic salons, the views are admired in beautiful and richly decorated optical boxes which are real works of art. The show was transformed into a real scientific experiment. But the optical views also entertained the people who were in a hurry when a hawker set up a box on a market and began to narrate the extraordinary events that had taken place in a more or less distant and inaccessible country.

There are three categories in the production of optical views.

  • Topographic views: Cities, Monuments, Ports, Distant regions, reproduced with more or less accuracy, depending on the documents available to the engraver. It is obvious that the authors of these prints had not seen these territories. They therefore recomposed these landscapes by compiling various engravings and drawings, which explains many fantasies.
  • The historical scenes : Inaugurations, Coronations, Battles, Fires or Natural disasters form a subject that the people are fond of.
  • Views with a religious or moralizing theme. For educational value, these prints were mainly produced by Parisian publishers in the rue Saint-Jacques.

Our Guarantee

With more than 20 years experience and a catalogue of more than 40.000 antique prints, drawings and historical documents dating from the 14th to the 19th century, the Galerie Napoléon, parisian antique dealer's gallery, is one of the world references in the field of antique prints,etchings and antique graphic arts.

In addition to thousands of impassioned of antique prints throughout the world, the Galerie Napoléon is honoured to count among its customers : national archives, museums, historical monuments and important home designer companies. All attracted by the extraordinary diversity of its catalogue and the quality and speed of its services.

This experience allows us to guarantee to each one of our customers the authenticity of the antiques in our catalogue and the shipment of their orders within 24 hours.

Free customization

Customize for free the color of your museum quality bevel cut edge passepartout (acid free & neutral pH) among a color chart of 23 shades.
This option will be offered to you free of charge in the cart.

  • 201
  • 202
  • 203
  • 204
  • 205
  • 206
  • 207
  • 208
  • 209
  • 210
  • 211
  • 212
  • 213
  • 214
  • 215
  • 216
  • 217
  • 218
  • 219
  • 220
  • 221
  • 222
  • 223

Secured shipment

All our antiques can be shipped worldwide. The orders are dispatched within 24H in a secured packaging.

The Galerie Napoléon offers free shipping for all orders over 50EUR for France, 70EUR for all EU destinations and 90EUR for worldwide destinations.

For orders below these amounts, the shipping costs are 8EUR for France, 12EUR for all EU destinations and 17EUR for worldwide destinations.

Secured payment

  • Credit card secured by Paybox, european leader in the online payment (CB, Visa, Eurocard/Mastercard)
  • PayPal (American Express,..)
  • European bank transfer SEPA (IBAN/BIC/SWIFT)
  • Bank check (drawn on a french bank)
  • Invoice payment (Reserved for european public entities : Museums, National Archives, Ministries, Town Halls ...)

Related artworks

Galerie Napoléon

Louis-Philippe

Oath of Louis-Philippe (August 9th, 1830) | Original steel engraving drawn by Lafosse, engraved by Lafosse. 1835

Oath of Louis-Philippe (August 9th, 1830)

Original steel engraving drawn by Lafosse, engraved by Lafosse. 1835
Portrait of Louis-Philippe I (1773-1850) - King of the French | Original steel engraving drawn by Léon Cogniet, engraved by A. Lefevre. Chine collé. 1840

Portrait of Louis-Philippe I (1773-1850) - King of the French

Original steel engraving drawn by Léon Cogniet, engraved by A. Lefevre. Chine collé. 1840
(Algeria) - Siege of Constantine (1837) - Louis-Philippe - Molé | Original steel engraving drawn by Joachim Rousseau, engraved by Ramboz. 1838

(Algeria) - Siege of Constantine (1837) - Louis-Philippe - Molé

Original steel engraving drawn by Joachim Rousseau, engraved by Ramboz. 1838
Portrait of Louis-Philippe I (1773-1850) - King of the French | Original steel engraving drawn by Wintherhalter, engraved by Audibran. 1853

Portrait of Louis-Philippe I (1773-1850) - King of the French

Original steel engraving drawn by Wintherhalter, engraved by Audibran. 1853
(Algeria) - Siege of Constantine (1837) - Louis-Philippe (Horace Vernet) | Original steel engraving drawn by Horace Vernet, engraved by Colin. 1853

(Algeria) - Siege of Constantine (1837) - Louis-Philippe (Horace Vernet)

Original steel engraving drawn by Horace Vernet, engraved by Colin. 1853
Siege of Constantine - Algeria (1837) - Louis-Philippe - Molé | Original steel engraving drawn by Martinet, engraved by Réville. Hand watercolored. 1837

Siege of Constantine - Algeria (1837) - Louis-Philippe - Molé

Original steel engraving drawn by Martinet, engraved by Réville. Hand watercolored. 1837

Architect

Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Markets Hall of Tours (M. Guérin) | Original steel engraving engraved by G. Maurage. [Specimen]. 1870

Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Markets Hall of Tours (M. Guérin)

Original steel engraving engraved by G. Maurage. [Specimen]. 1870
Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Artistic ironwork of Spain | Original steel engraving. Anonymous. [Specimen]. 1870

Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Artistic ironwork of Spain

Original steel engraving. Anonymous. [Specimen]. 1870
Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Insane Asylum of Sainte Anne in Paris (M. Questel) | Original steel engraving drawn by J. Japhet, engraved by G. Maurage. [Specimen]. 1870

Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Insane Asylum of Sainte Anne in Paris (M. Questel)

Original steel engraving drawn by J. Japhet, engraved by G. Maurage. [Specimen]. 1870
Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Triumphal Arch of Alfonso V of Aragon to the Castel Nuovo of Naples | Original steel engraving drawn by O. Angelini, engraved by P. Bertoni. [Specimen]. 1870

Drawing of Architect - Architecture - Triumphal Arch of Alfonso V of Aragon to the Castel Nuovo of Naples

Original steel engraving drawn by O. Angelini, engraved by P. Bertoni. [Specimen]. 1870
Drawing of Architect - Architecture - House - Apartment Building Avenue Duquesne in Paris (M. P. Vigouroux) | Original steel engraving drawn by E. Japhet, engraved by Maurage fils. [Specimen]. 1870

Drawing of Architect - Architecture - House - Apartment Building Avenue Duquesne in Paris (M. P. Vigouroux)

Original steel engraving drawn by E. Japhet, engraved by Maurage fils. [Specimen]. 1870

Hotel de Ville de Paris

French Revolution - Louis XVI of France - Tricolor Cockade - Hotel de Ville de Paris (1789) | Original copper engraving drawn by Prieur, engraved by Willmar. Watermarked paper. 1818

French Revolution - Louis XVI of France - Tricolor Cockade - Hotel de Ville de Paris (1789)

Original copper engraving drawn by Prieur, engraved by Willmar. Watermarked paper. 1818
French Revolution - 9 Thermidor Year II (27 July 1794) - Robespierre - Terror - Committee of Public Safety - Assault of Hotel de Ville de Paris | Original copper engraving drawn by Duplessi - Bertaux, engraved by Gysin. Watermarked paper. 1816

French Revolution - 9 Thermidor Year II (27 July 1794) - Robespierre - Terror - Committee of Public Safety - Assault of Hotel de Ville de Paris

Original copper engraving drawn by Duplessi - Bertaux, engraved by Gysin. Watermarked paper. 1816
Proclamation of the French Republic (1870) - Hotel de Ville de Paris | Original wood engraving engraved by Daudenarde. Hand watercolored. 1880

Proclamation of the French Republic (1870) - Hotel de Ville de Paris

Original wood engraving engraved by Daudenarde. Hand watercolored. 1880
Architect's Drawing - Hotel de Ville de Paris - Project (M. Davioud) | Original steel engraving engraved by Martel. 1875

Architect's Drawing - Hotel de Ville de Paris - Project (M. Davioud)

Original steel engraving engraved by Martel. 1875
Architect's Drawing - Hotel de Ville de Paris - Project (M. Davioud) | Original steel engraving engraved by Martel. 1875

Architect's Drawing - Hotel de Ville de Paris - Project (M. Davioud)

Original steel engraving engraved by Martel. 1875