A sinking ship amidst a stormy sea. The ship’s sails bear the flags of Bavaria, Italy, Saxony, Switzerland and France. Figures of soldiers are on the deck; on the right among the waves is a boat with Napoleon leaving. A tall yellow rock, on which the ship crashed is on the left, above it is a mast with two sails falling on it, “Holland” is written on the upper one, “Confederation of the Rhine” on the lower one. At the bottom is a quatrain:

This is a work from a series of popular prints by Ivan Terebenyov on the subject of the Patriotic War of 1812. Ivan was the son of a master of ornamental sculpting, he studied at the Imperial Academy of Arts since childhood. Terebenyov initially studied painting and was later transferred to sculpture by the order of the academic authorities.

During his academic years, Ivan Terebenyov took part in serious work on creating reliefs for the pedestal of Rastrelli’s monument to Peter I. Terebenyov executed the relief “The Battle of Poltava”, which became his first significant independent and monumental work. After graduating from the Academy of Fine Arts, Terebenyov left for Tver and began working as a graphic artist.

A number of Terebenyov’s cartoons are dedicated to Napoleon’s flight from Russia: “The Passage of a Tall Traveler from Warsaw to Paris”, “The Retreating of the French Cavalry, Who Ate Their Horses in Russia”. Terebenyov’s caricature “Diligent and Voluntary Supply of Recruits from the French People” is distinguished by caustic sarcasm: “Three recruits and two horses from two Departments. A force to be reckoned with from a great nation.”