Expositions
The exhibition presents 36 lithographs by Denis Auguste Marie Raffet (1804-1860), collected in the album called Souvenirs d’Italie. Expédition de Rome , to illustrate the various stages of the French expedition to Rome in 1849.
The album, which bears a dedication to Prince Anatole Demidoff, husband of Matilda Bonaparte and client of several works of Raffet, presents a continuous narrative of the events from the landing of the troops in Civitavecchia on April 25, 1849 to the blessing of Pius IX on April 18, 1850, to the army who brought him back to the papal throne.
The accuracy and the descriptive precision, which are so peculiar of Raffet’s style, attest the quality of his art, with his clever use of chiaroscuro contrasts in the layout of the battle scenes and the strategic movements of the troops. The artist meticulously and realistically outlines the uniforms of the expeditionary force so that one could say that these lithographs can be a true repertoire of French army uniforms of the period.
The lithographs were not immediately collected in one volume, but probably published as they were printed from 1852, the date that appears on the cover of the edition edited by Gihaut Frères in Paris.
The album was purchased in 2005 by the Lazio Region for the Library of the Napoleonic Museum.
Info
Tuesday-Sunday: 9.00 am - 7.00 pm; Monday Closed; Last admission 1/2 hour before closing time
Adults: € 4,50
Concessions: € 3,50
Assessorato alle Politiche Culturali e della Comunicazione – Sovraintendenza ai Beni Culturali del Comune di Roma
Zètema- Progetto Cultura