Public data from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Learn more
A Christening in Revolutionary France
About the Artwork
Mallet’s image depicts a Republican baptism ceremony during the French Revolution. The event takes place in a magnificent Gothic church, identifiable as such by its pointed arches and stained glass window. A mother presents her infant to the priest who raises his right hand as he administers the sacrament. Even the musicians pause from playing to watch this spectacle.
Inscriptions
verso, upper left corner, in graphite: paoli 30; lower left corner, label pasted down on sheet: VALLEE, Md. D'Estampes,
Provenance
Patrice Batelli; purchased by Mr. Noah L. Butkin [1918-1980], 1976 (sale, 3 December 1976, “Important old master drawings”, lot #102, Christie’s, London); bequest of Mrs. Muriel Butkin [1915-2008], 2005 to The Cleveland Museum of Art.
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Jean-Baptiste Mallet (French, 1759–1835)
- Date
- late 18th century
- Medium
- Pen and brown and gray inks and red chalk and watercolor, heightened with white; squaring for transfer
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 33.3 x 44.6 cm (13 1/8 x 17 9/16 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- Bequest of Muriel Butkin
- Accession no.
- 2017.213
More by Jean-Baptiste Mallet in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00011693
Powered by Art Trackers