Political Chemist and German Retorts or Dissolving the Rhenish Confederacy

December 12, 1813

Not on view

A little Napoleon is being heated to dissolution point in a glass vessel atop a "German Stove." Two retorts are connected with the vessel, which are inscribed "Intrigue and Villainy" and "Ambition and Folly." Four are connected to the stove and are inscribed: "Gasconade and Lies," "Fire and Sword," "Arrogance and Atrocity," and "Murder and Plunder." Representation of European powers surround the scene.

Artwork Details

Title: Political Chemist and German Retorts or Dissolving the Rhenish Confederacy
Artist: Thomas Rowlandson (British, London 1757–1827 London)
Publisher: Rudolph Ackermann, London (British, active 1794–1832)
Subject: Napoléon Bonaparte (French, Ajaccio 1769–1821 St. Helena)
Subject: Tsar Alexander I (Russian, 1777–1825)
Subject: Frederick William III, King of Prussia
Subject: Frederick Augustus I, King of Saxony (1763–1827)
Subject: Pope Pius VII
Subject: Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor (Austrian, Florence 1768–1835 Vienna)
Subject: Karl XIV Johan, King of Sweden and Norway (Swedish, French, Pau 1763–1844 Stockholm)
Subject: Frederick I, King of Württemberg (German, Trzebiatów 1754–1816 Stuttgart)
Date: December 12, 1813
Medium: Hand-colored etching
Dimensions: Sheet: 9 3/4 × 13 3/4 in. (24.7 × 34.9 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959
Object Number: 59.533.1523
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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