Carnival Procession of Students at the French Academy in Rome

A float with academy students in ‘Chinese’ garb passes the Column of Marcus Aurelius in Rome. The buildings are sketchily rendered, so that the focus is on the revellers. The Roman carnival was world-famous and always attracted a great deal of attention. At this time, Pierre was not yet studying in Rome, but his later fellow students undoubtedly informed him about this event in great detail.