Some exceptional artists have only had their talent recognized after their death; remember for example the painters Gaugin, Van Gogh and Vermeer, or the famous writers Kafka and Emily Dickenson. Others, on the other hand, have marked their time but have never known fame either in their lifetime or in their death and have unfortunately fallen into oblivion. Léon Dardel is one of them. In this too short article I would like to make you discover his work and thus pay him a well deserved posthumous homage. One of the last Dardel's drawings I could find (1892) Dardel was born in Paris in 1814 into a family of jewellers. His biography and training remain obscure, the man being almost unknown despite a reputation that is still alive. We know he get married in 1843 and had a son three years later. He was a painter before becoming an engraver (illustrator), this profession most often appearing in official documents, and several of his works were exhibited in expositions from 1831 to 1839. Dardel's numismatic line drawings were esteemed by contemporaries but their author, considered to be the master in his field, was never the subject of a study or of official recognition. Translation:"All the drawings were carefully made under my direction by Mr. Dardel, the most skilful artist in Paris of this genre." (Henry Cohen, 1857) Translation: "I am giving to the public today 49 engraved plates with the greatest care by Mr. Leon Dardel, whose talent all numismatists know and appreciate." (Jean de Witte, 1868) Translation: "The execution of these drawings could not be entrusted to a burin more skilful nor more practiced than that of Mr. Dardel." (Ernest Babelon, 1885) This fact, less paradoxical than it seems, is revealing of the status reserved for illustrators of intellectual and scientific publications of the time. Obliged but subordinate collaborators, the engravers could not claim any scholarly quality. In the society of the time, steeped in a sense of social hierarchy, no one would have dreamed of exaggerating beyond measure the labor of a craftsman, even if it was remarkable gifted. Dardel hardly practiced the engraving of creation or of transcription, which would have conferred on him the quality of an art engraver. Having also never claimed to reproduce coins as best he could, he did not interest scholars, hardly moved by his disappearance. Dardel collaborated with the Revue Numismatique, or rather with its editor Ch.-L. Rollin, from 1844 and, from 1848 to 1888, he created all the plates of the Revue Numismatique. Revue Numismatique 1848 with Dardel's signature Revue Numismatique 1888 with Dardel's signature This astonishing longevity makes it possible to follow the evolution of the artist since his early works, which at first glance do not stand out from the current production, up to the most completed productions of maturity. Always very well made, Dardel's engravings sometimes rise until an impressive mastery. Thus the Roman medallions engraved for the work of W. Froehner (1834-1925) are of unparalleled quality and would be enough in themselves to rank their author among the great artists. The French royal coinage with the illustrations of the Hoffmann treaty and the Gallic coinage with the Atlas of H. de La Tour also found their best illustrator in Dardel. Cohen, Babelon, Borghesi and even the BNF hired him to work for them. The reproduction of the models with a minimum of lines, the fair and moderate use of the shading processes specific to intaglio, largely explain the impression of elegant clarity that emerges from Dardel's finest creations. The corrosion, weaknesses in striking and defects in the blank being scrupulously reproduced. Finally, it should be noted the care taken in the epigraphy. The letters are drawn and not indicated by a simple line, their shape, their spacing and their possible deformations suitably restored. The precision of Dardel's work frequently makes it possible to use his engravings like photographs to establish dies connections, identify some specimens and distinguish official coinage from their imitations. A direct comparison between the work of the master and the coins that served as models is instructive. He died anonymously without having, it seems, a simple obituary... Three examples of Dardel's precise drawings: A not often seen NIGRINIAN aureus An AMPHITRITE cameo, BNF. A MAXIMIAN unique coin, rediscovered after 144 years of absence thanks to Dardel In memory of this incredible artist, please post your comments or anything you fell relevant !
How accurate was he? Here's a coin in my collection with an overlay of a Dardel drawing from Cohen, demonstrating a reverse die-match!
Absolutely terrific thread I have four coins (three certain, one likely due its rarity) in my collection that Dardel illustrated in Cohen's 1857 book on Roman Republican coins.
Very interesting thread, thank you for bringing him into light! It's funny because I've always found that the plates in De Witte's book "Recherches sur les empereurs qui ont régné dans les Gaules au IIIe siècle de l'ère chrétienne" were of very high quality, but I did not pay much attention to the engraver before your thread. It appears that Léon Dardel made them as well. It's truly a great work. It's amazing how you can sometimes find the very coin he reproduced or find die matches with the plates. Some pictures plates are way worse than that... I have this coin that is a obv. and rev. die match with the De Witte#309. Postumus, ae reduced double sestertius IMP C M CASS LAT POSTVMVS P F AVG VICTORI AVG (sic)
This is a great topic for a thread. Thanks for posting this and letting us know about this great engraver. John
