Les yeux de Cauchon

This work by Henri-Paul Motte, titled “The Eyes of Cauchon,” depicts a scene inspired by the trial of Joan of Arc. The composition shows several figures peering through openings cut into a thick stone wall, creating a dark and oppressive atmosphere. The title refers to Pierre Cauchon, the bishop of Beauvais associated with Joan’s trial, and suggests the idea of secret surveillance, controlling gazes, or spying around the prisoner. Exhibited at the Salon of 1907, the image belongs to the tradition of French history painting at the turn of the twentieth century, which reinterpreted major episodes of the national past through dramatic and memorial staging.