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Source Description
This perspective view (often called a <em>vue d’optique</em>,or optical view) is an example of a popular art and entertainment format during the second half of the 1700s in Europe. The hand-colored etching and engraving was made to be viewed with a special viewing device consisting of a convex lens and a mirror, so that scene appeared to be a three-dimensional image. Here, the viewer can enjoy a perspective view of the French Palace of Versailles. Such views—which were only made for a short time and largely disappeared with the advent of photography—appealed to both elite audiences, who viewed collections of images with their own viewing devices in private drawing rooms, and popular audiences, for whom they were street entertainment for a minimal fee.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
380077
label
Vue du Chateau et d'une Partie de la Ville de Versailles
core
obj
dtoType
print
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
380077
contentType
print
title
Vue du Chateau et d'une Partie de la Ville de Versailles
description
This perspective view (often called a <em>vue d’optique</em>,or optical view) is an example of a popular art and entertainment format during the second half of the 1700s in Europe. The hand-colored etching and engraving was made to be viewed with a special viewing device consisting of a convex lens and a mirror, so that scene appeared to be a three-dimensional image. Here, the viewer can enjoy a perspective view of the French Palace of Versailles. Such views—which were only made for a short time and largely disappeared with the advent of photography—appealed to both elite audiences, who viewed collections of images with their own viewing devices in private drawing rooms, and popular audiences, for whom they were street entertainment for a minimal fee.
date
c. 1770–1800
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q87481575
creators
380585
29622
genreSpecific
Print
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 31.9 x 42.5 cm (12 9/16 x 16 3/4 in.)
cul
France
accession
2020.162
Source extras
tec
etching and engraving, hand colored
tombstone
Vue du Chateau et d'une Partie de la Ville de Versailles, c. 1770–1800. Balthasar Friedrich Leizelt (German, 1710–1820), after Jacques Rigaud (French, 1681–1754). Etching and engraving, hand colored; sheet: 31.9 x 42.5 cm (12 9/16 x 16 3/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley Collection Gift, 2020.162
collection
Prints
didYouKnow
The text at the top of this print is printed in reverse so that it would be legible when looking through a special viewing device consisting of a convex lens and a mirror.
creditline
Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley Collection Gift
updatedAt
2026-06-11 12:17:40.807000
sourceId
380077
dept
Prints
coll
Prints
med
etching and engraving, hand colored
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
aa0360789e739da3