Treasure Hunt all over the World

It was approaching six o'clock in the afternoon, after browsing through many important paintings in the French Oil Painting Museum, Ye Tian and the others finally came to the most important painting in this exhibition hall, and began to stop and admire this famous painting.

This painting is "The Coronation of Napoleon I", one of the most important works of art in the Louvre. It has been displayed in the Louvre since its birth, and it is never allowed to leave.

"The Coronation of Napoleon I" is an oil painting created between 1805 and 1807 by Jacques-Louis David, a famous French painter and the founder of Neoclassicism.

Jacques-Louis David was the most important French painter before and after the French Revolution, and was also Napoleon's court painter. He painted many famous paintings praising Napoleon's great achievements.

At the same time, he is also the darling of the Louvre, one of the painters with the largest collection of paintings in the Louvre!

From the Grand Gallery to the French Oil Painting Museum, Ye Tian and the others have seen no less than 20 David's paintings along the way, including "The Oath of the Horatii Brothers", "The Mediation of the Sabine Women" and other world famous paintings.

In this painting "The Coronation of Napoleon I", David used his own brush to truly record the coronation ceremony of the king held in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1804, which is of great historical significance.

This is a masterpiece, the scale of the oil painting is very large, about 9.3 meters wide, 6.1 meters high, and the painting area is more than 50 square meters, occupying an entire wall in the exhibition hall, which is very shocking!

In addition to the scale, there are more than 150 characters in this painting. Each character has different costumes, postures and expressions. Each character is very vivid and vivid!

The complex scene environment of the coronation ceremony, the light and shadow effects that many characters should have, and the grasp of complex color levels all determine that this is a huge figure oil painting that is extremely difficult!

From accepting the commission of Napoleon, going to Notre Dame de Paris to observe the coronation ceremony, making a panoramic model of the coronation ceremony, starting to draft, until starting to paint.

In order to complete this masterpiece, David spent more than two years and nearly three years!

Once this painting came out, it immediately caused a huge sensation. Napoleon was very satisfied, and then collected it and displayed it in his palace, which is the Louvre!

At the same time, this masterpiece has also become David's most famous masterpiece and an unsurpassed pinnacle of neoclassicism!

In the center of the painting, Napoleon, wearing purple velvet and a magnificent embroidered cloak,

He had already put on the crown, and he was holding the small crown in his hands, ready to put it on the head of Queen Josephine who was kneeling in front of him.

The big purple velvet cloak behind Josephine was carried by two noble women. Behind Napoleon, Pope Pius VII sat. His posture and expression seemed rather helpless, and he could only acquiesce to the situation in front of him.

The momentum of the whole painting is very solemn and solemn. There are more than 150 people in the painting, and each character is depicted with precise portraits, which are meticulous and very vivid!

Especially Napoleon and Josephine, whether it is their appearance, movements, expressions, or even the embroidery on their costumes, they can withstand careful observation with a high-power magnifying glass, and almost no flaws can be picked out.

The people around Napoleon and Josephine included court dignitaries, ministers, generals, officials, ladies, cardinals, and envoys from various countries.

Above the painting, Napoleon's mother, Maria Ramolino, sat on a golden throne, condescendingly watching the ongoing coronation ceremony with a smile on her face.

In fact, this character was added by David himself!

Because of some disputes between Napoleon and his younger brother Lucien, Napoleon's mother, who was on Lucien's side, did not attend Napoleon's coronation ceremony!

Although this was David's own initiative, Napoleon was very grateful to David. His actions undoubtedly made the painting more perfect and beautified the image of Napoleon.

In addition, David also painted himself into this masterpiece, which is very inconspicuous in a corner of the upstairs stand.

It can be said that this painting "The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I" is the meticulous work of the painter David in his life, giving full play to David's outstanding talent in sketch modeling and color sketching!

All the characters in the painting have both form and spirit, and the colors obey the overall concept. The picture is golden and magnificent, fully expressing the strong texture of the characters' clothes and the environment in the palace.

Since the Renaissance, the seriousness of classicist painting has reached such a level, which can be described as unmatched among the painters at that time!

After standing in front of the painting and appreciating it carefully for two or three minutes, everyone just woke up from the shock.

Immediately afterwards, Betty whispered with emotion:

"Wow! Not only is this painting huge in size, but the coronation ceremony is even more grand, which is shocking! The previous "The Wedding at Cana" is larger in size, but its visual impact is not as good as this one!"

Ye Tian turned to look at Betty, then smiled and said in a low voice:

"The reason for this difference is mainly because of the subject matter. Although "The Wedding at Cana" is larger in scale and has many characters, it is only a wedding after all!

This "Coronation of Napoleon I" is different. What it depicts is a very important historical event and the coronation of the king. Naturally, the two cannot be compared.

Coupled with Napoleon's great fame and neoclassical style of painting, the shocking effect of "The Coronation of Napoleon I" is obviously stronger than that of "The Wedding at Cana"

As soon as the words fell, Anderson on the other side interrupted and said:

"Steven, let me explain this painting to everyone. This painting is called "The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I", why is Napoleon crowning Queen Josephine?

The Pope sitting behind Napoleon looked more like a guest of honor than one who came to Paris to crown Napoleon. Is there any story here? "

Ye Tian nodded slightly, and then began to explain this world famous painting.

"To appreciate this painting, one must understand the background of its birth. After Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor in November 1804, in order to consolidate his throne, he decided to hold a coronation ceremony.

As the emperor of France, Napoleon, who had ravaged Italy crazily, had the then Pope Pius VII come to Paris in person to crown him with extreme arrogance.

Napoleon's purpose is very clear, which is to use Pope Pius VII's great religious appeal to let the French people and the European people recognize his "legitimate status".

During the coronation ceremony, Napoleon refused to kneel in front of the pope and let Pius VII crown himself. He took the crown directly and put it on his head, completing his coronation!

Later, when painting the "Coronation of Napoleon I", the painter David painstakingly selected the second half of the scene where the emperor crowned the queen in order to avoid this embarrassing scene.

In this way, Napoleon's central position was highlighted on the screen, and the Pope was not embarrassed. At the same time, the legitimacy of the coronation ceremony was maintained, and everyone was happy.

However, David is still playing tricks here. Take a closer look at Pope Pius VII's expression and movements. His expression looks very depressed, and he dares not speak out.

Looking at the two fingers he stretched forward, they were pointing in the direction of Napoleon's back. Based on the situation at the time, Pope Pius VII might not know how to curse Napoleon! "

"Hahaha"

There was a burst of light laughter at the scene, and Betty and Anderson all laughed, each of them was overjoyed.

The few visitors who were closer were also amused by Ye Tian's explanation, very happy.

After the laughter subsided, Ye Tian continued to explain this world famous painting to Betty and the others. It was still very professional, vivid and wonderful!

While explaining, he also secretly turned on the perspective, and began to quickly scan this world-famous painting, hoping to discover some surprising secrets!