En garde national

Honoré Daumier

National Gallery of Art

The image features two men. The first man is depicted from the waist up, standing upright with his body slightly turned to the side. He has a stern facial expression, an exaggerated nose, and a military-style haircut. He is wearing a dark uniform with a large white belt across his chest. The second man is seated and leaning on a desk, holding a piece of paper in one hand and resting his chin on the other. He has a cartoonish face with a mustache and a cap tilted on his head. His uniform also has decorative shoulder pads. The background of the image has a faint textured pattern with superimposed text at the top and bottom, resembling a newspaper or print setting. On the desk in front of the seated man, there is a sealed ink bottle with a pen in it.