Commemorative Certificate for WWI Monument at Verdun, France, 1920, Georges Scott (French, 1873-1943), Lithograph, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Louis Bailey Audigier, 1934.1.1026.
This certificate commemorates the fallen soldiers, French and Allies, at the nine-month battle of Verdun in the First World War, and announces the construction of a monument in their honor.
The Douaumont Ossuary was constructed during and after WWI to house the bones of the approximately 230,000 unidentified German and French men that perished at Verdun. There are many monuments to the memory of the battle of Verdun on the site. This commemorative poster was probably made for donors who gave money towards the ossuary, which was constructed in 1922.
The lithograph was created by Georges Scott, a famous artist who depicted the war, and it was dedicated and signed by Marshal Phillipe Pétain. Pétain includes a dedication pertaining to the perpetual remembrance of the dead of Verdun by the French people, and thanks the donors’ “generous gifts.”