The Roman Aristocrat

http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/files/original/c6cfc95ef7f45efe8ae9add4339a7816.jpg

Title

The Roman Aristocrat

Description

The fattened clergyman and the well–bedecked nobleman go off unbothered while the figure in the foreground assesses carefully the value of a commoner. This complex image also includes a pig—likely a symbol for Louis XVI—with the cleric and the noble. Thus the print clearly attacks the upper classes and likely the monarch. But there is more. Specifically, the National Assembly had set a means test for voters, and a higher one for prospective officeholders. So the gigantic female is measuring the commoner for his right to participate in the new revolutionary society. This then is also a critique of the National Assembly. Who, then, is the figure in the foreground? Perhaps it is the revolutionary legislature, represented here as an arrogant Roman Senate, a clearly oligarchical body.

Creator

None Identified

Source

Bibliothèque Nationale de France

Date

1791

Rights

Public Domain

Relation

http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/67/|<span>Michel Hennin. <em>Estampes relatives à l'Histoire de France</em>. Tome 119, Pièces 10386-10489, période : 1789</span>|<span>de Vinck. <em>Un siècle d'histoire de France par l'estampe, 1770-1870</em>. Vol. 16 (pièces 2536-2759), Ancien Régime et Révolution</span>

Format

JPEG

Language

French

Identifier

67

Original Format

Engraving

Physical Dimensions

26 x 20 cm

Title (French)

La Romaine Aristocratique

Caption

le marc d'argent préside en France, Esprit talent dons superflus, Au diable vertus sans finances, Beaucoup d'appelés peu d'élus

Citation

None Identified, “The Roman Aristocrat,” LIBERTY, EQUALITY, FRATERNITY: EXPLORING THE FRENCH REVOUTION, accessed March 19, 2024, https://revolution.chnm.org/d/67.