Eugène Laville, “portrait Of General Barral,” Signed, Oil On Canvas, 1869 Salon

Eugène Laville, “Portrait of General Barral,” signed, oil on canvas, 1869 Salon

19th-century French school, large full-length portrait of General Barral in ceremonial dress, by Eugène Laville. Oil on canvas, signed and dated 1868.

Large original frame with fluting and rows of gilt egg-and-dart moldings. Bearing the number 1407 from the 1869 Salon.

Frame 175 cm x 124 cm / Canvas 144 cm x 92 cm

Eugène Barral (1808–1890) in the uniform of a Major General, wearing the medals of Commander of the Order of Médjidié (Ottoman Empire), Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor (these decorations were painted later by another hand, as Barral was appointed to this rank in 1870 and Laville died by that date), Companion of the Order of the Bath (Great Britain), the Crimean Medal (Great Britain) with a ribbon featuring four commemorative clasps (the most important of which, in his eyes, must have been “Alma,” the battle in which he particularly distinguished himself), and below, the commemorative medal of the Italian Campaign and the Sardinian Medal for Military Valor.

Eugène Laville, a French painter (1814–1869), was an Alsatian painter originally from Saverne. He moved to Paris in 1857 and from that date on exhibited regularly at the Paris Salon.

Lavigne was one of the recognized and appreciated official painters of his time: 15 of his works were exhibited at the Paris Salon between 1857 and 1869.