[Le Diable a Paris Frontispiece]

The visual introduction to a mid-19th century literary examination of Paris.

This striking scene, signed Brugnot in the lower left but popularly attributed to Grandville, shows a darkly-clad figure (believed to be the protagonist) peering through a loupe at a massive map of Paris, spread out across the French countryside. A walking stick and lantern indicate he is on a long journey, though the purpose of the basket of papers on his back is unknown – possibly all the sources from which the figure draws his work, or the draft volume itself. The print was published in Paris in 1845 by J. Hetzel et Compagnie as the frontispiece of Le Diable a Paris, and the view captures the tone of the work well.

Le Diable a Paris (The Devil in Paris) was a two-volume publication from 1845-1846 that offered an insightful (though satirical) of the French Capital during the July Monarchy. Edited by Pierre-Jules Hetzel, the book employed a heavily illustrated framing story where a demon (the figure in the view) was tasked by Satan to describe life in Paris. Too lazy to describe the city himself, the little devil uses the writings of famous 19th-century authors like Honoré de Balzac and George Sand.

The work was a huge success and became a foundational text for understanding the social, cultural, and political landscape of Paris before its major urban renewal under Baron Haussmann. According to an exhibition held by Staatsgalerie, “Thus, this literary work [Le Diable a Paris] raised awareness of the architectural beauty of old Paris and laid the foundation for monument preservation efforts.”

Sources: Staats Gallery; Metropolitan Museum of Art;