The Battle of Arcola

This is a book illustration (central crease) that has been laid down on card. At the top is the date 15 November 1796, and it depicts the decisive Battle of Arcola (15-17 Nov 1796). This was Napoloen’s defeat of the third Austrian attempt to raise the siege of Mantua and it extricated him from a most precarious military position. The left side of the image shows the pontoon bridge over the River Adige at Ronco. There are many similar images to this one. This is a soft ground etching (used up until 1820) which accords with the subject date. The colour has been applied by hand afterwards. The condition overall is not good, and this explains why someone laid it down to protect the tear bottom right. There are scratch marks in the light section top right. However, it is an interesting image that was produced shortly after the event.