Standbeeld van Michel Ney door François Rude op de Avenue de l'Observatoire in Parijs c. 1850 - 1880

This photograph depicts François Rude’s statue of Michel Ney on the Avenue de l'Observatoire in Paris. Marshal Ney was one of Napoleon’s most celebrated commanders, but was executed after the Bourbon restoration for supporting Napoleon’s return during the Hundred Days. Rude’s statue, completed in 1853, captures Ney in the act of defiance against his executioners. Its location on the Avenue de l'Observatoire serves to further emphasize the rehabilitation of Ney’s image within French society, turning a figure once deemed a traitor into a national hero. The statue embodies the changing political tides of 19th-century France. The image's existence as a photograph raises interesting questions. Who commissioned the photograph? How was it circulated? These sources are invaluable for understanding the political uses of public art in nineteenth-century France.