'Veue de la ville de St. Omer du coste du fort de Bournonville (View of Saint Omer near Fort Bournonville)' from volume "Oeuvres de Vandremeulen [SIC]"

bound volume (65.5 x 50.5 x 5.5 cm) s. on plate b.c. "R. Bonnart, Sculp"; French inscr. on plate b. l. "Veue de la ville de St Omer du coste du fort de Bournonville. / Dessigne sur le naturel , & peint dans le grand Escalier du Chateau de Versailles par F. Vander Meulen. / Ce distribue a Paris par l'Auteur en l'Hostel des Manufactures Royalles dit des Gobelins Et en la rue St Jacques Avec privilegedu Roy"; Latin inscr. on plate b.l. "Prospectus sancti Audomari ad Castellum vulgo, de Bouronville. / Ad impsum naturale prototypum delineatum et pictum in latere Scalce maioris Regiae Versaliensis per F. Vander Meulen. / Veneunt Parisiis Apud Authorem, in Regia Artium officina, Vulgo dicta des Gobelins, Et in via Jacobea. cum privilegio Regis." CRE BONNART, Robert; (French; 1652-1729) AFTER MEULEN, Adam Frans van der; (Dutch; 1632-1690) PUB MEULEN, Adam Frans van der; (Dutch; 1632-1690) Part of William Hunter's original bequest, this volume contains 112 engravings after paintings made or published by van der Meulen. A Flemish Baroque artist who specialised in horses and landscapes, he was invited to work for Louis XIV as a painter of views of royal castles, hunting scenes, processions, travels and military campaigns. Travelling with the troops and sketching on the battlefield, van der Meulen's fresh style was influential in the development of the relatively new genre of battlescapes. Following the success of his paintings recording the campaigns in Flanders he had many of his works engraved. Most were included in the remarkable collection of engravings known as the Cabinet du Roi originated with Louis XIV's minister J.B. Colbert. By 1670 these engravings were published in volumes and presented as gifts to visiting dignitaries or offered for sale. Hunter's volume, still in its late 17th century binding, is a now rare surviving example. From a series depicting the conquests and battles of Louis XIV grouped at the front of the volume, this print depicts the French troops under the command of the Duke d'Orleans, brother of Louis XIV, approaching the town of Saint Omer. The town was taken by the French in 1677 during the Dutch War in which Louis XIV claimed areas of the Netherlands. Van der Meulen used a small group of engravers to copy his works, including his pupil, French draughtsman Robert Bonnart.

Collection

Hunterian Items

Inventory Number

2898085

Title

'Veue de la ville de St. Omer du coste du fort de Bournonville (View of Saint Omer near Fort Bournonville)' from volume "Oeuvres de Vandremeulen [SIC]"

Object Type

PhysicalObject

Measurements

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