Girona in Catalonia

Girone en Catalogne is the first known engraving of the city of Girona, created with the etching technique and touched up with burin by the French engraver Nicolau Perelle (1631-1695). This work was printed on three separate plates: the first two feature a border that acts as a frame and baroque ornamentation that extends across the top of the image, while the third plate includes the legend “Girone en Catalogne”.
This engraving was part of a series dedicated to commemorating the conquests of Louis XIV during the War of the League of Augsburg. In particular, in June 1694, Girona was conquered by French troops under the command of the Duke of Noailles. The engraving was probably made between this event and Perelle’s death in 1695.
Engravings must be considered as works of great artistic value, which often also offer a unique view of the historical events of the time. Although etching was the dominant technique until the 19th century, other techniques such as lithography and woodcut were also introduced in this period.
This document is significant at the European level both for its content and for its type. As for the content, it is a graphic testimony of the conquests of the French king Louis XIV during the War of the League of Augsburg. Regarding the typology, it is one of the first image documents of the city, a witness to the beginnings of the expansion in the use of images to tell history.