This vibrant chromolithographic poster titled Panthéon Républicain – Les grands hommes de la République is a monumental homage to the intellectual, political, and military figures who shaped the ideals of the French Republic from the Revolution to the Third Republic.
Created around 1890, at the height of France’s republican consolidation, the composition by E. Conrad assembles a striking fictional gathering of historical giants across a grand, neoclassical stage. It serves both as a didactic image and a patriotic tableau—intended to inspire admiration and republican virtue in viewers of the late 19th century.
In the foreground, central republican leaders such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, Gambetta, and Victor Hugo are easily identifiable, surrounded by an array of generals, scientists, philosophers, and statesmen. Uniforms, robes, and tricolor sashes celebrate not only individual greatness but the continuity of liberté, égalité, fraternité through time.
The background features stone monuments engraved with mottos like "Aux héros de la liberté", flanked by eternal flames and sculptural allegories—symbols of remembrance, sacrifice, and the enduring legacy of republicanism. The inclusion of prominent women’s silhouettes also nods to the allegorical figure of the Republic, Marianne.
More than a decorative work, this poster is a visual manifesto of republican identity, idealism, and collective memory—a rare and highly symbolic artifact of its era.
Original Poster
Politics - France
Agustoni & Castéran
Printed by Cooperative Lithograph in Zurich
Good condition, some soiling, small tears
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