The Siege of Paris
Medal
1871 (made)
1871 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This silver medal depicts the siege of Paris. Chaplain (1839-1909) was a French medallist and sculptor. He entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1857, where he studied sculpture under François Jouffroy and medals under Eugène Oudiné. In 1863 he won the Prix de Rome for medal-engraving and worked in Rome from 1864 to 1868. He exhibited regularly at the Salon from 1863, receiving numerous awards. As the leading French medallist he was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1881. He had been profoundly important in transforming the public's perception of medallic art.
Chaplain changed public taste by moving away from the established tradition by which medallic portraits and reverse compositions emerged from a completely flat field bounded by a raised circular rim. He incorporated the field into the composition, using it not as a neutral background but as the pictorial space in which the event or portrait sitter was situated.
Chaplain changed public taste by moving away from the established tradition by which medallic portraits and reverse compositions emerged from a completely flat field bounded by a raised circular rim. He incorporated the field into the composition, using it not as a neutral background but as the pictorial space in which the event or portrait sitter was situated.
Object details
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| Object type | |
| Title | The Siege of Paris (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Cast silver |
| Brief description | Medal, The Siege of Paris, silver, by Jules-Clément Chaplain, French,19th century, 1871. |
| Physical description | Medal depicts: Obv.: An erect female figure with rifle and bayonet wearing a military cloak, decorated with the cross of the Legion of Honour, thrown over her shoulders and fastened at the throat; on her bandaged head she wears a mural crown; behind her are a gun and trenches and in the distance a view of Paris. Rev. CHAMPIGNY DEUX DECEMBRE CHATILLON 19 SEPTEMBRE L'HAY 30.SEPTEMBRE LE BOURGET 28-29 OCTOBER BUZENAL 19. JANVIER. The Champigny monument with an olive tree. In the exergue SIEGE.DE. Paris 1870-1871. |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Object history | Bought, 19s. 8d. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Place depicted | |
| Summary | This silver medal depicts the siege of Paris. Chaplain (1839-1909) was a French medallist and sculptor. He entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1857, where he studied sculpture under François Jouffroy and medals under Eugène Oudiné. In 1863 he won the Prix de Rome for medal-engraving and worked in Rome from 1864 to 1868. He exhibited regularly at the Salon from 1863, receiving numerous awards. As the leading French medallist he was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1881. He had been profoundly important in transforming the public's perception of medallic art. Chaplain changed public taste by moving away from the established tradition by which medallic portraits and reverse compositions emerged from a completely flat field bounded by a raised circular rim. He incorporated the field into the composition, using it not as a neutral background but as the pictorial space in which the event or portrait sitter was situated. |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 361-1903 |
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| Record created | November 13, 2008 |
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