This image was part of the first installment of Le Midi de la France. Fortifications were built around the town of Arles in 1263 and were still in place around the entire perimiter of the city in 1815. Seventeen portes penetrated the fortification, giving access to the city. The Porte des Chataignes or Chataigniers, which was demolished around 1860, had stairs that led down to the water of the Rhone river. (Heilbrun 158-160) Other prints of this image are held at the George Eastman House and the National Gallery of Canada.
