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| Title | The Separation of Madame Elizabeth from her Niece Madame Maria Theresa | |
| Collection | Atkinson Art Gallery, Southport | |
| Artist | Meisel, Ernst (German artist, 1838-1895) | |
| Date | 1870 (dated) | |
| Signed | yes | |
| Description | Meisel was a German history painter. This work is a depiction of a tragic moment during the French Revolution representing the last meeting of the imprisoned and soon to be executed Madame Elizabeth, sister of Louis XVI, from her niece, Marie Therese, daughter of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Elizabeth wearing black is stood with her back to her niece who is kneeling, distraught on the floor of her prison cell. She reaches up to take Elizabeth's left hand. The jailer dressed in the clothes of a revolutionary looks on disdainfully. Through the arched doorway several armed guards await Elizabeth's departure. There is a bible and a cross on a chain on the bed to the left. | |
| Current Accession Number | 1939.874 | |
| Inscription | front lr 'Ernst Meisel, Munchen 1870' | |
| Subject | history (French Revolution); figure (soldiers and two females) | |
| Measurements | 100 x 87 cm (estimate) | |
| Material | oil on canvas | |
| Acquisition Details | Given by George Preston 1939. | |
| Provenance | S.R. Hibbard. | |
| Rights Owner | Atkinson Art Gallery, Southport, Sefton M.B.C. Leisure Services | |
| Author | Lisa Howard | |