[Sculpture of Virgin and Child, Notre Dame, Paris]

1853–1854

Not on view

The mid-nineteenth-century's renewed interest in France's medieval past resulted in the restoration-sometimes heavy handed, sometimes imaginative-of many of the nation's most important monuments. The work on Notre Dame, which suffered deliberate damage during the Revolution and neglect in the years that followed, began in 1845 and lasted some twenty-five years. Under the direction of Viollet le Duc, new statuary was commissioned, including this sculpture of the Virgin and Child, a work by Adolphe Victor Geoffroy-Dechaume. In Mestral's photograph, which comes from the Geoffroy-Dechaume archives, the heavenly figures remain earthbound on the construction site; shortly after, they would be lifted to a central position on the west façade, above the main portal and in front of the rose window.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

References

Title: [Sculpture of Virgin and Child, Notre Dame, Paris]
Artist: Auguste Mestral (French, Rans 1812–1884 Rans)
Date: 1853–1854
Medium: Salted paper print from paper negative
Dimensions: 35.1 x 27.6 cm (13 13/16 x 10 7/8 in. )
Classification: Photographs
Credit Line: Purchase, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Gift, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 2000
Object Number: 2000.290
Curatorial Department: Photographs

More Artwork

By Auguste Mestral

In the same medium

From the same time and place

[Angel of the Passion, Sainte-Chapelle, Paris], Auguste Mestral French, Salted paper print from paper negative — [Angel of the Passion, Sainte-Chapelle, Paris]
Auguste Mestral
1853–1854

Ceramic Horn, Glazed pottery, French — Ceramic Horn
French
late 18th or early 19th century

The Refectory of the Imperial Asylum at Vincennes, Charles Nègre French, Salted paper print from glass negative — The Refectory of the Imperial Asylum at Vincennes
Charles Nègre
1858–59

Moulin Rouge: La Goulue, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec French, Lithograph printed in four colors; three sheets of wove paper — Moulin Rouge: La Goulue
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Printer Affiches Américaines, Charles Lévy
1891

[Entrance to the Port of Boulogne], Edouard Baldus French, born Prussia, Salted paper print from paper negative — [Entrance to the Port of Boulogne]
Edouard Baldus
1855

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 contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.