Title
Folding fan with design of Charles and Robert's balloon
Caption
Folding fan representing Charles and Robert's balloon – 1st December 1783.
Painted on silk with ivory embellished with gold (27 x 50 cm)
Muller-Quênot Collection
Info+
On Monday 1st December 1783, in the jardins des Tuileries, Charles and Robert rose into the air on board their hydrogen balloon for an hour and forty minutes. That same day at a quarter to four the machine landed between the villages of Nesle and Hédouville in the Prairie de Nesle, 9 leagues north west of Paris, near the town of Beaumont sur l'Oise. The aerostatic machine began to descend in the Prairie de Nesle having previously obtained landing permission from the duke of Chatres, Mr de Fitz James and three parsons from the surrounding areas. Mr Charles set off on his own again in the craft in front of the same spectators. Within 10 minutes it had reached a height of 1524 "toises," equivalent to 9144 ft. After gliding in the air for 35 minutes, the machine came back down and landed in the farmland of Bois de la Tour de Lay, without faltering after travelling a league and a half since its departure. Mr Charles is said to have experienced other sensations at this height other than the bitter cold.
Date
18th century
Credit line
Photo12/Association Muller Quenot Rosheim
Reference
MQR10A00_100
License type
Rights managed
Available size
71,8Mb (5,8Mb) / 18,2in x 15,3in / 5468 x 4590 (300dpi)