Voltaire and Émilie du Châtelet
In this watercolor, painted in 1750 by the French artist Louis Carmontelle (1717–1806), Voltaire is shown conversing with Gabrielle Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, marquise du Châtelet. She had died the year before after giving birth to a daughter, an untimely end for one of the few people, man or woman, who understood Newton’s mathematics. Voltaire lived in her house for a number of years (tolerated by her husband), and they set up a scientific laboratory there to pursue their mutual interests. Émilie du Châtelet prepared a French translation of Newton’s Principia Mathematica that was published after her death; it is still the standard French translation. In his typical tongue-in-cheek fashion Voltaire said that she was “a great man whose only fault was being a woman.” (Bibliothèque nationale, Paris, France / bnF / Art Resource, NY.)