Ceiling in the Hercules Salon
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Apotheosis of Hercules, ceiling painting by François Lemoyne in the .
Paris, France, December 2022
Château de Versailles | Place d'Armes
The Curious Museum in the Hercules' Salon
Olafur Eliasson
2016
It consists in a game of mirrors installed outside the building which reflects the Hercules' Salon.
"Apotheosis of Hercules" 1733-1736 by François Le Moyne.
Salon d'Hercule, Chateau de Versailles.
The Salon d'Hercule (or Hercules Drawing Room) was completed in 1737 and functioned as a State Room for formal dinners, balls and receptions. The painting on the ceiling is titled Apotheosis of Hercules and it is from this that the room takes its name. Painted by François Le Moyne, it is the largest ceiling painted on canvas in Europe, covering some 480 square metres. Louis XV was sufficiently enamoured with it that he bestowed the title of First Painter upon Le Moyne. Unfortunately the stress of his work, palace intrigues and the death of his wife left the painter a broken man and six months after completing work on the ceiling he committed suicide. The painting depicts Hercules’ arrival on Olympus after his labours had raised him to the status of a god and it served as a not so subtle allegorical allusion to the heroic and quasi divine aspirations of the French King.
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Inside the Palace of Versailles: part of the "Apotheosis of Hercules" on the ceiling by Francois Lemoyne in Hercules Salon.
Let's start our journey inside Versailles Palace with a view of a huge ceiling fresco painted by Francois Lemoyne in 1736.
I'm in the Hercules Salon, the second largest room in the Palace. It is as wide as a football field but only 1/2 as long. It was the waiting and screening room for those wishing access to King Louis XIV.
Lemoyne's painting is called “The Apotheosis of Hercules” (Apothèse d’Hercule, in French) depicts the deification (or “Apotheosis”) of the Greek superhero, Hercules, upon his death. According to legend, Hercules was the tenth king of ancient Gaul, and in Roman times, he was even worshiped in Gaul (present-day France), so the depiction of Hercules was often used as an allegory for the French kings. The artist worked 3 years on the painting of 315 square meters. The painting contains 142 different characters and was so celebrated that Lemoyne was made First Painter to the King. Unfortunately, his success did not last long. The excess of work, court intrigues at Versailles, and the death of his wife drove Lemoyne to madness. He committed suicide in Paris in 1737 by stabbing himself seven times, six months after finishing the ceiling painting. With his death, the fashion of large allegorical ceilings disappeared.
Everything in Versailles is ornate beyond expectation. This sculpture is apart of the fireplace in the Salon d'Hercule, the Hercules Salon. The room was used as a ball room during the reign of Louis XV.
Apotheosis Of Hercules (1733-1736) by François Le Moyne on the ceiling of the Hercules Salon.
A fresco by François le Moyne in the Hercules Salon, Palais de Versailles.
Hercules Salon
I waited so patiently for that bench to be vacated. I was standing there with my camera posed, ready. Then the moment the people got up, this guy walked right in front of me and then sat down. Oblivious.
I wonder how much it would cost to get access to this place alone? Ya, I don't think I could afford it either :(
en.chateauversailles.fr/homepage
Hercules Salon
en.chateauversailles.fr/homepage
Ceiling of the Hercules Salon, Francois Le Moyne
You know I told him, just a plain eggshell white...
en.chateauversailles.fr/homepage
