The Last Hours Of Captivity – Mme Manon Roland / Late 19th Century / After Jagoupil (1839–1883)

Oil on canvas after Jules Adolphe Goupil (1839–1883) The last hours of captivity – Madame Manon Roland Monogrammed “MP” lower left

65 x 50 cm (without frame)
66 x 82 cm (with frame)
Molded wooden frame

Superb oil on canvas from the end of the 19th century, after Jules Adolphe Goupil, a French painter very fashionable during the Second Empire and internationally renowned for his refined genre scenes and elegant portraits. The painting illustrates a major episode in revolutionary history: the last hours of captivity of Madame Manon Roland (1754–1793), a leading intellectual and political figure of the French Revolution. Coming from a modest but cultured background, she was one of the leading figures in the Girondin circle. Arrested during the Terror, she spent her last days in Sainte-Pélagie prison before being guillotined on November 8, 1793. It is said that as she ascended the scaffold, she cried out: "O Liberty, what crimes are committed in your name!" The composition faithfully captures the spirit of Goupil's works: a sober, elegant, melancholy setting that magnifies the tragic fate of the heroine. The young woman, dressed in a light-colored dress belted with a wide ribbon, is depicted in a dignified and resigned attitude. The accessories—book, papers, simple furniture—recall Manon Roland's intellectual life and her tragic end. The work, on its original canvas, has benefited from discreet professional restoration and is now in excellent exhibition condition. It can be hung as is, ready to be admired.