Niagara Falls print, Chute de la Riviere de Niagara, c. 1706
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Cameron, Chantal
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Abstract
A print of Niagara Falls titled “Chute de la Riviere de Niagara. Elie enlevé dans un char de feu” by Sébastien Le Clerc. This was the first separately issued print of Niagara Falls. The print is of Le Clerc’s 1706 etching/engraving showing Elijah ascending to heaven on his chariot of fire above the cascading Niagara River. His depiction of the Falls is based on the folding plate included in Louis Hennepin’s Nouvelle decouverte d’un tres grand pays situé dans l’Amerique (1697). It is thought to be the second engraving of Niagara Falls after Hennepin’s.
Description
Sébastien LeClerc (1637-1714) was a well-known French artist who worked as a printmaker, technical draftsman and military engineer. His early career focused on physics, architecture and perspective. He later studied under the renowned painter Charles Le Brun, who encouraged him to focus on engraving. He became so skilled that he was given the position of Graveur du Roi for Louis XIV.