Le Serment des Voraces
Anonymous, French, 19th century French
After Jacques Louis David French
Publisher Aaron Martinet French
Not on view
This hand-colored print is a spoof of Jacques Louis David's famous painting, The Oath of the Horatii of 1784 (Musée du Louvre, Paris). The print was made in 1814, and is considered a parody of Jean-Jacques-Régis de Cambacérès, duke de Parme (1753-1824), who had served under Napoleon and was one of the authors of the Napoleonic Code. Following the Restoration of the Bourbon monarchy, he spent two years in exile in Brussels.
The word "Voraces" (gluttonous) in the title is a play on the word "Horaces" meaning Horatii. Instead of swords, the central figure holds aloft forks and a bottle of wine.
