Ball of the Bastille

Currently not on view

Ball of the Bastille

1790

Louis Le Coeur (French, active c. 1784–1825) After a drawing by Jacques-François-Joseph Swebach-Desfontaines (French, 1769–1823)

On July 14, 1789, an angry crowd, frightened by the thousands of soldiers posted around Paris, stormed the Bastille prison in search of weapons with which to arm themselves. The demolition of the fourteenth-century fortress soon came to symbolize the triumph over the forces of tyranny and repression and the first anniversary of the fall of the Bastille was commemorated by a special festival. Delegates from all over France were invited to come to Paris to swear an oath of loyalty and to enjoy fireworks, pageants, and other displays of national solidarity. Here the celebrants dance on the very spot where the prison once stood.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Titles:

Ball of the Bastille
Bal de la Bastille

Date:

1790

Artists:

Louis Le Coeur (French, active c. 1784–1825) After a drawing by Jacques-François-Joseph Swebach-Desfontaines (French, 1769–1823)

Medium:

Wash-manner engraving printed in color from four plates

Dimensions:

Image: 13 1/4 × 10 5/8 inches (33.7 × 27 cm) Sheet (cut within platemark on sides): 18 3/16 × 11 3/4 inches (46.2 × 29.9 cm)

Classification:

Prints

Credit Line:

Gift of Mrs. Morris Hawkes, 1944

Accession Number:

1944-80-19

Geography:

Made in Paris, France, Europe

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Currently not on view