My Grandfather Sergeant James Arthur Hogan from Tipperary in Ireland was stationed in Rouen in 1917 at the British Army supply base where he worked in administration. The artist of the etching was Marcel Augis who trod the battlefields of the Western Front during the Great War and recorded the devastation of the battlefields and the surrounding areas My grandfather bought one of his etchings from him before he returned to England. You can see the Cathedral of Rouen in the background and I am sure a lot of soldiers would have said a prayer or heard its bells from their hospital beds which were built close to this area. Artists like Camille Pissarro and Claude Monet also painted scenes of this cathedral This whole street was destroyed in the second world war This original etching has been in the family for nearly one hundred years and was only found recently when we were clearing out the house. It is in perfect condition as it was hidden behind another picture for about forty years. I am not surprised that my grandfather bought this picture as he was the son of a classical arts teacher and he could see the beauty of this even though he was surrounded by war. I hope you take a minute to enjoy it and remember all the soldiers who would have passed by this street and heard the bells from the Cathedral.
The item I am attaching to this note is a copy fo a print of La Rue deL'Epicerie, Rouen . France etched by Marcel Augus and dated 1917. This street was full of grocery speciality shops of spices from the far east and the Roman Catholic Cathedral is in the background