The First Consul crossing the Alps at the Grand-Saint-Bernard pass
Musée National du Château de Malmaison
Without a doubt the most famous painting of the Napoleonic legend. David here exalts what was in fact quite a prosaic reality, namely that Napoleon crossed the pass riding a donkey, wearing not a magnificent cloak but a simple grey greatcoat ! The complete personification of the Romantic hero, the First Consul triumphs on a rearing charger in a diagonal composition, the very image of irresistible rise. A propaganda masterpiece, the work puts Napoleon on a par with the conquerors of antiquity, namely Hannibal and Charlemagne, whose names appear graven in the foreground rocks.
Four variants of the original painting commissioned by Charles IV of Spain exist. They were painted by David and his workshop and differ in the colour of the horses and the cloak.
This painting was shown as part of the exhibition Napoléon et l’Europe at the Musée de l’Armée in Paris, from 27 March 2013 to 14 July 2013.