Max Blondat (Crain, France, 1872 - 1925, Paris)
Medal: Le Vêtement du Prisonnier de Guerre, 1914
Bronze plaquette, 7 x 4.1 x 0.3 cm (2 3/4 x 1 5/8 x 1/8 in.)
This small commemorative plaque shows a soldier in high relief on a small rectangle of bronze. He is seated on a flat rock. He is facing left, so we see him in profile view. He is bent over at his waist, absorbed in the task of writing. Two sheets of paper are balanced on his right knee. His right hand holds a long, thin pencil at a diagonal that points to his covered face. He shields his expression from the viewer with his left hand. His fingers rest on his forehead, just under the brim of the flat topped cap of his military uniform. His breeches are loose and tucked into his boots. He wears a loose fitting shirt. The sleeve falls away to expose the back of his hand and wrist. The relief sculpture is signed in the left lower corner: Max Blondat d'apres (after) Forain. On the reverse side there is a large inscription in French: Le Vêtement du Prisonnier de Guerre. Fondé en Décembre 1914. À ceux qui l'ont créé À ceux qui l'ont aidé. [Clothes for the prisoners of war, founded in December 1914, to those who have created it, to those who have rendered assistance]. The metal has a rectangular, mottled, brown leather case with a square paper label in the center of the bottom side which has printed on it: V.S.Canale -Graveur Editeur-Medailles Plaquettes- Modernes- 37 Quai de L’Horloge Paris
Macknight Room
Commentary
This World War I medal made by the French sculptor Max Blondat (1879-1926) was based on a work by the Impressionist painter Jean Louis Forain (1852-1931). Featuring a study of a French prisoner of war, it was produced to raise funds for the charity - Clothes for Prisoners of War Agency.