Cuirassier with Drawn Sword

Ernest Meissonier was best known for his exquisitely rendered genre scenes, which drew inspiration from the Dutch masters and were praised for their “microscopic” perfection. But he was also a serious student of military subjects, creating a series of canvases on major episodes in the life of Napoleon I. For his battle scenes, Meissonier fashioned wax sculptures of horses and military figures, such as this cavalryman (known as a cuirassier), which served as a study for the painting 1807, Friedland (exhibited in the Salon of 1875). First shown to the public in 1891, Meissonier’s waxes were later cast in bronze to preserve the artist’s conception.