Lieven Cruyl

Almost certainly ordered by Michel Lepelletier de Souzy (1640-1725), Directeur général des Fortifications et du Génie, in charge of the construction of the Pont Royal;
Lacour Family, Saint-Fargeau;
by descent to Yvonne Lacour (1875-1951) and her husband, Adolphe Wattinne (1863-1941)

E. Mareuse, 'Trois vues de Paris de Lieven Cruyl', Bulletin de la Société de l'Histoire de Paris et de l'Ile de France, 1919, pp. 64-71, reproduced;
F. Lugt, Bibliothèque nationale. Cabinet des Estampes. Inventaire général des dessins des écoles du Nord, Paris 1936, p. 77, under nos. 277 and 278;
F. Lugt, Musée du Louvre. Inventaire général des dessins des écoles du Nord. Ecole flamande, Paris 1949, vol. I, p. 46, under no. 549;
B. Jatta, Lieven Cruyl e la sua opera grafica, Brussels/Rome, 1992, p. 145, no. 108 D, reproduced fig. 136

On two joined sheets of paper, laid down onto heavy card (fixed only around the edges). Paper generally somewhat discoloured, particularly towards lower left. Various abrasions and losses especially down central joint in paper, in sky towards top left and lower left corner. Some light foxing throughout. Some repaired tears centre right edge. Image as a whole still good and readable. Sold in a carved and gilded frame.
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NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This is one of Cruyl's three exceptionally large and elaborate views of various stages in the construction of the Pont Royal.  They were all in the Wattinne collection when they were seen and published by Mareuse (Literature, op. cit.).¹  One bears a dedication to Le Pelletier de Souzy, who was in charge of the construction, so it is safe to assume they all were made for him, and probably intended for prints to celebrate the achievement of such an engineering feat.

Cruyl, a native of Ghent and with some priestly training, was an accomplished topographical artist.  He travelled in Italy and then came to France where he was in the service of Louis XIV, as an architectural draughtsman and perhaps also as an architect.  See lot 124, an allegorical subject which was drawn in France at the same date as this and is signed in the same way, and lot 126 which is more typical of his topographical bird's eye views.

As well as the two companion drawings to this, four other views of the Pont Royal by Cruyl are known.  Two in the Louvre show the bridge completed, seen from both directions, and presented in a straightforward manner.  Two in the Bibliothèque Nationale show aspects of the construction from a near viewpoint and are of a smaller size than the present example.²

The Pont Neuf du Louvre was Louis XIV's gift to his 'bonne ville de Paris' and for that reason became commonly known as the Pont Royal.  It is the third oldest bridge in the capital, after the Pont Neuf and the Pont Marie, which link the right and left banks to the Ile de la Cité, the medieval centre of royal power. The Pont Neuf du Louvre was erected to replace an old wooden bridge which had been carried away by a flood on 20 February 1684.  It was designed by Jules Hardouin Mansart, the King's architect, executed by Jacques IV Gabriel and François Romain, a Dominican monk from Holland who was apparently responsible for the innovative construction techniques, including the dredging and the timber caissons.  The works were supervised by an eminent royal officer, Michel Le Pelletier de Souzy, Directeur Général des Fortifications et du Génie.

This view is looking west and is important not only for what it reveals about the complex technical engineering works of the construction site, but also for what it shows of the contemporary geography of the city at a moment when it was expanding beyond its old limits.  On the right bank is a large empty space which would become the Place de la Concorde, and in the distance, among the trees of the Bois de Boulogne, is the massive shape of the Château de Madrid, a Renaissance hunting lodge favoured by François I, demolished in 1787. 

On the left bank is the Quai de la Grenouillère which became the Quai d'Orsay, its modest buildings to be replaced by mansions.  Behind this is a mosaic of kitchen gardens, the Pré aux Clercs, which became the aristocratic Faubourg Saint-Germain.  At the upper left is the Hôtel Royal des Invalides, completed a few years before, facing the Pré Saint-Germain.

1. B. Jatta, op. cit., nos. 109D, 110D, both reproduced; (no. 109D sold London, Christie's, 7 July 2009, lot 32)

2. B. Jatta, op. cit., nos. 14, 15, 11 and 12, all reproduced