Second Empire style

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Second Empire style in the Reichstag building

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Beaux-Arts style summary

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Arts & Culture

Second Empire style

architecture

Also known as: Napoleon III style, Second Empire Baroque style

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Article History

Second Empire style in the Reichstag building

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Category: Arts & Culture

Also called:: Napoleon III, Second Empire Baroque

Date:: c. 1850 - 1900

Related Artists:: Richard Morris Hunt; James Renwick; Hector-Martin Lefuel; Charles Garnier; Louis-Tullius-Joachim Visconti

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Second Empire style, architectural style that was dominant internationally during the second half of the 19th century. Developing from a tendency of architects of the second quarter of the 19th century to use architectural schemes drawn from the periods of the Italian Renaissance, Louis XIV, and Napoleon I to give dignity to public buildings, the style was solidified into a recognizable compositional and decorative scheme by the extension designed for the Louvre in Paris by Louis-Tullius-Joachim Visconti and Hector Lefuel in the 1850s. Given prestige by this important setting, the classical style rapidly became an “official” one for many of ...(100 of 563 words)

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