About the Artwork
François Rude commemorated a crucial moment in modern history through the powerful language of classical allegory. The Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 honors France’s first citizen army, formed in response to a threatened invasion by a Prussian/Austrian coalition intent on restoring the deposed Bourbon monarchy. Dressed in classical armor and carrying ancient weapons, men ranging from youth to old age rally under the command of a fierce, female warrior. Born up by wings and wearing a Phrygian cap (worn by freed slaves in Roman times), she represents the victorious spirit of Liberty, conceived as the embodiment of France during the Revolution of 1789. This highly finished plaster relief—one of a few of Rude’s models to survive—so closely resembles the final version sculpted on a colossal scale for the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysées in Paris that it may have served as a guide for the stone carvers.
From Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts 89 (2015)
Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 (The Marseillaise)
ca. 1835
François Rude
1784-1855
French
----------
Original plaster model
Unframed: 42 × 24 1/2 × 7 inches (106.7 × 62.2 × 17.8 cm) Framed: 51 1/2 × 36 1/2 × 7 inches (130.8 × 92.7 × 17.8 cm) Including base (depth including bracket mount): 10 1/2 inches (26.7 cm)
Sculpture
European Sculpture and Dec Arts
Founders Society Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Fund
2001.67
Public Domain
Markings
Please note: This section is empty
Provenance
2001-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)For more information on provenance, please visit:
Provenance pageExhibition History
Please note: This section is empty
The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.
We welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.
Suggest FeedbackPublished References
Darr, A. P. "Two newly acquired sculptures by Rude and Rodin in the Detroit Institute of Arts." In La Sculpture en Occident: Etudes offertes à Jean-René Gaborit, ed. G. Bresc-Bautier et al. Paris, 2007, pp. 272-83.
Darr, A. P. and B. Gallagher. "Recent acquisitions (2000-2006) of European sculpture and decorative arts at The Detroit Institute of Arts." The Burlington Magazine 149 (June 2007): 453, pl. XIII (ill.).
Bulletin of the DIA 89, no. 1/4 (2015): 14-15 (ill.).
Kindly share your feedback or any additional information, as this record is still a work in progress and may need further refinement.
Suggest FeedbackCatalogue Raisoneé
Please note: This section is empty
Credit Line for Reproduction
This work is in the public domain.
François Rude, Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 (The Marseillaise), ca. 1835, original plaster model. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Fund, 2001.67.
Feedback
We regularly update our object record as new research and findings emerge, and we welcome your feedback for correction or improvement.
Suggest Feedback