The Embassy Of An Emir On Delegation To A French Admiral

Impressive acquisition representing an emir, on his frail skiff, protected by his black slaves under a ceremonial parasol, handing over a sealed envelope at the end of his scimitar, to the admiral commanding a French battleship. Charles Crespin is a press cartoonist who, at the beginning of the 20th century, created the front covers for the literary supplement of the Petit Journal. . His style is immediately recognizable, virtuoso and spectacular, intended to strike minds hungry for sensational images. It is difficult today to appreciate the impact of the written press which, for major newspapers like this, produced more than a million copies daily at the turn of the century. As is often the case, for press artists, the biography of Charles Crespin is very poorly known, to the point that he is constantly confused (this is a personal hypothesis) with a Belgian homonym, a very renowned artist, for his posters. The major differences in style are obvious. I would like this hypothesis to be challenged, and I welcome any additional information. The fact remains that this drawing is a project for the front page of the Petit Journal, probably not accepted, because I was unable to find it printed. To be spectacular, it can seem ambiguous in its reading. Indeed, the emir handing over the envelope seems to threaten the admiral even though we are in fact witnessing the delivery of an invitation, in a climate of renewed peace, if the event recounted can be identified as the Tangier crisis. The battleship can be identified as the Massena (the only one to have turrets on its sides in addition to those on the deck). This one was actually cruising off the coast of Morocco at this period and its commander was invited by the sultan to officially cross Tangier. This drawing vividly illustrates the colonial aims of the Republic of the time, by showing the gap between the two worlds by the confrontation of a frail boat and a gigantic battleship. But we can notice that the artist reserved the color for the indigenous embassy, plunging the iron and steel monster, like its crew, into a disturbing and dehumanizing gray..... Signed lower left.