Le Bateau Catafalque de Napoleon from Retour en France by Victor Adam 1840

[BONAPARTE, Napoleon]; ADAM, Victor; ARNOUT, Jean Baptiste. Le Bateau Catafalque de Napoleon. Paris, Jeannin, [1840].
 
Large folio lithograph, 510 x 355 mm. Blind-stamped. Dessine d'apres nature et lithographie par Arnout; les figures par Arnout fils. Printed by Lemercier, Bernard et Cie. Moderate scattered spotting, somewhat concentrated to the margins and upper portion, with faint central fold; a good example overall.
 
A striking depiction of the ceremonial funerary barge constructed for the return of Napoleon's remains to France during the Retour des Cendres ceremonies of 1840. The image shows the immense catafalque barge illuminated by torches and draped in mourning decoration as it advances across still waters, accompanied by a small attendant boat in the foreground. The plate forms part of the celebrated Retour en France des Depouilles Mortelles de Napoleon series documenting the exhumation, transport, and state funeral of Napoleon in 1840.