Napoleon III And His Soldiers – Memories Of The Empire – By Auguste Maurin - Second Empire

What an astonishing work! Emperor Napoleon III, awarding a Legion of Honor to one of his soldiers. Mounted on a white horse (to emphasize the nobility and purity of the man), the Emperor, with his whitening mustache, decorates wounded soldiers. Behind him is his staff. Behind the rewarded soldiers are the infantry, cuirassiers, and artillery. In the left foreground, wounded officers, including the one with a bandaged head wearing the medal of the Italian campaign. In the right foreground, two soldiers are cooking while admiring the Emperor. In the middle ground, a column of infantry carries the French flag. The landscape in the background includes houses with pointed roofs, Christian religious buildings, and a mill built on a house. We can only imagine what the painter intended to depict. He mixed a whole bunch of scenes to symbolize the end of the Empire (with all the wounded soldiers), but with a triumphant Emperor (albeit aging) and damaged soldiers who still hold high the French flag. The work done in ink and watercolor was painted after Sedan and after the end of the Empire. Probably in the 1870s-1880s. Was Auguste Maurin a soldier of the Empire? A fervent supporter, that much is certain. The work is in its original frame (with some gaps), original wood panel on the back and period glass. It is an astonishing work, teeming with life and colors, witness to a bygone era. 108x80cm complete 96x70 on view The painter Auguste Maurin is an illustrious unknown. We only know of one other work by him, kept at the Crozatier Museum in Puy-En-Velay. This is a remake of a work by Edouard Detaille painted in 1888. Inventory number 1987.2.76. He is probably a nostalgic for the Empire, perhaps a soldier who painted his memories. Contact me for delivery as the work is large and fragile.