Line engraving by charles normand reproducing "edwy and elgiva", a historical painting presented at the salon of 1812 by elizabeth harvey. Reproduced in the annals of the museum and the modern school of fine arts under the title "edwin and elgiva", accompanied by the following commentary by charles-paul landon (p. 29-30)
"edwin, grandson of alfred the great, ascended the throne at the age of 18, in 953. Elgiva, a young princess of royal blood, having made a strong impression on the heart of the young king, he married her even though she was his relative, despite the advice of his former advisors. On the day of her coronation, the nobility gathered in a large room where they abandoned themselves to the excesses of the table, when edwin, attracted by sweeter pleasures, went to find the queen in his mother's apartment. There he indulged in the feelings that elgiva inspired in him, when dunstan, accompanied by the archbishop of canterbury, broke into the apartment where the queen was, and insulted her by tearing her from edwin's arms, whom he overwhelmed with insulting reproaches. We do not know which chronicle provided the artist with this tradition, which may be accurate; but there is another very different one, more probable, and more consistent with the known character of s. Dunstan: “edwin having ascended the throne, and scandalizing his subjects by his irregularities, dunstan spoke to him several times with the freedom of an apostolic man. One day he went so far as to enter a room where the king had confined himself with one of his concubines, and took her away by force. The king, excited by this woman, sent this holy archbishop into exile, who retired to flanders, but his disgrace did not last long. » (historical dict. )
whichever side the historical truth may be, it matters little for the merit of the painting in terms of execution. This execution is not very strong, and the drawing is a little thin, but these imperfections are partly compensated by the softness of the characters and the grace of the whole. Edwin placed his scepter and his crown at the feet of elgiva, this idea is admissible in a figurative sense, but presented in a table, that is to say in the absolute sense, we believe it to be unworthy and even inappropriate. ". Object Type: print. Date: 1812. Medium: line engraving. Edwy et Elgiva d'Elizabeth Harvey - Annales du musée et de l'école moderne des beaux-arts
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