A Road in Naples 1872

Gustave Caillebotte created this oil on canvas painting, 'A Road in Naples', sometime in the late 19th century. Caillebotte was a key figure in the Impressionist movement in France, and he was independently wealthy. So, unlike many of his contemporaries, he didn't need to rely on sales to the Salon or wealthy patrons. This image of a horse and buggy on a dusty road near Naples seems simple, but it can tell us a lot about Italian social history. Naples in this period was a popular tourist destination, especially for wealthy Europeans. We can imagine the well-to-do occupants of the carriage visiting Naples as part of their "Grand Tour." We see a looming Vesuvius in the distance, a reminder of the ever-present natural forces that shaped the lives of people in the region. To understand this work more fully, we can consult travel journals from the period, social histories of Naples, and even weather reports to get a sense of what it was like to travel on this road in the late 1800s.