A. Giovanetty. Project For The Municipal Belfry On The Sainte-croix Church In Nantes.

Black ink, watercolor, and gouache. 41.3 x 29.6 cm (16.3 x 11.6 in) visible, in a 68.4 x 54 cm (27 x 21 in) frame. Some light foxing. Inscription at the bottom of the drawing: “Communal belfry on the Sainte-Croix church / H. Driollet Architect – Plomberie d'art‑– A. Hamon Entrepreneur”. Names indicated at the bottom left: “Emmanuel and C. Cormier Phot.”. Name indicated at the bottom right: “A. Giovannetty Del.”. Preparatory drawing for a photomechanical or photochemical engraving, commemorating the construction in 1860 of a new bell tower for the Sainte-Croix church, in the Bouffay district of Nantes. Drawing by A. Giovannetty, district architect for municipal buildings in Nantes, based on a project by Henri-Théodore Driollet, road architect for the city of Nantes. The architect Henri-Théodore Driollet (1805-1863), a former student of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, winner of the second Prix de Rome in 1834 and road architect for the city of Nantes until his death in 1863, provided several projects for the construction of a new bell tower for the Sainte-Croix church, built in the 17th century. These projects incorporate the clock of the old municipal belfry, which originally topped the Bouffay tower, a building dating from 1664 and destroyed in 1848, the only remaining vestige of the old Bouffay castle. Our drawing shows Henri-Théodore Driollet's project, which was completed in 1860, as indicated by the inscription engraved above the main entrance door: "This belfry bell tower was erected in the Year of Grace MDCCCLX / F. Favre Mayor of Nantes / Guilbeau Curé of Ste Croix." (Ferdinand Favre was mayor of Nantes from 1852 to 1866). This project incorporates not only the clock from the old Bouffay tower, but also its metal belfry. Several drawings for this project are preserved in the Nantes Municipal Archives (Inv. 1Fi3605-3607 and 1Fi31559). Ref. A13-42