The Guard And His Family - Miolans

Oil on canvas with oval view, signed lower right. Around 1850 “Diodore Rahoult: the guard and his family […] true rest within the family: the old guard is not rich, he is tired, but among his family he is happy”. The Château de Miolans, located in the valley of Savoie, in the commune of Saint-Pierre d'Albigny, is a former 11th century fortified castle which became a prison in 1694; the Marquis de Sade was imprisoned here on December 8, 1772 and escaped during the night of April 30 to May 1, 1773. The revolutionaries partially destroyed it and time ended up transforming it into ruins. After 1815 it was taken over by the Sardinian administration. A family of wine growers, alongside its agrarian activity, became its official guardian. In October 1850 Diodore Rahoult discovered the place and after numerous sketches taken from the motif (a drawing dated October 1850 is kept at the Grenoble Library) produced some paintings inspired by this historic site in the Val de Miolans, a of the ramparts of the princes of Savoy. Exhibition: • Salon de Lyon December 1852 - January 1853 n°334 The last governor of Miolans, Savoie • Salon de Grenoble 1853 n°112 The guard and his family (Miolans, Savoie) • Musée de l'Ancien Évêché Grenoble Diodore Rahoult, lyrics of palette Nov. 15, 2013 - Apr. 1, 2014 The guard and his family, Miolans, Savoie n°164 of the catalog, reproduced p.126 Bibliography: • Auguste Petit Diodore Rahoult and his work Librairie Prud'homme Grenoble 1874 p.13 • Courrier de l'Isère October 15, 1853. About the painting presented at the Grenoble Salon of 1853