Quentin Durward and the disguised Louis XI (recto); Study of male figure (verso)
Working in Paris, Bonington established new standards for watercolor, and here uses the medium to describe an episode near the start of Sir Walter Scott's "Quentin Durward" (1823). That novel dramatizes a fifteenth-century power struggle between Louis XI and Charles, Duke of Burgundy, and proved more popular in France than Britain when first published. The title character, standing here at right, is a young man of good family who travels to Plessisles-Tours in France to seek employment in the king's band of Scottish archers. After nearly drowning while fording a flooded river, Durward upbraids two onlookers who failed to warn him of the danger. Dressed as merchants, they are in fact Louis XI and Tristan l'Hermite, Marshall of France. The king–calling himself Maître Pierre and sporting red hose–admires the young man's spirit, conveyed in the drawing through his assertive stance. For many years this work was known only through an engraving by Edward Goodall used as a frontispiece in the 1831 set of Waverly Novels published by Robert Cadell.
Artwork Details
- Title: Quentin Durward and the disguised Louis XI (recto); Study of male figure (verso)
- Artist: Richard Parkes Bonington (British, Arnold, Nottinghamshire 1802–1828 London)
- Date: 1825–26
- Medium: Watercolor and gouache (bodycolor) over graphite
- Dimensions: sheet: 5 3/4 x 4 1/4 in. (14.6 x 10.8 cm)
- Classification: Drawings
- Credit Line: Purchase, Jeffrey L. Berenson, Charles and Jessie Price and Catherine G. Curran Gifts, 2004
- Object Number: 2004.102
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Richard Parkes Bonington
1824–27
Richard Parkes Bonington
Feillet
1824
Richard Parkes Bonington
1824
Richard Parkes Bonington
Feillet
1824
Richard Parkes Bonington
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
ca. 1826–27
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.