Francisque Arban (1815-1849),French balloonist,also known as Francesco Arban di Lione (as seen in the Italian inscription). Arban is most famous for one of his last flights,in 1849,when he crossed the Alps by hydrogen balloon from Marseilles,France,to Turin,Italy. He left at 6.30pm on 2nd September 1849,reaching a height of 4500 metres,passing to the south of Mont Blanc,and landing in farmland near Turin at 2.30am the next morning. This lithograph commemorates an earlier flight,Arban's twelfth,which took place in Rome. The surrounding artworks are related to his work: a gas bag and netting,a telescope,barrels of gas,and a balloon ascending over a crowd. This artwork was published in 1846 |