Lucerne, Switzerland: Bourbaki Panorama

Part of the French Army had just lost a major battle at the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871. They were by most standards, a mess.

What to do? March into Switzerland.

They couldn't carry everything, though. They left 11,000 horses, 1,150 wagons, 285 artillery pieces, 7,200 rifles and 64,000 bayonets behind. The commanders picked the right place. The Swiss took care of them for six weeks, and sent them back to France. 

Five years later, a group of artists got to work on a huge circular painting of the internment. It came out as the Bourbaki Panorama, and it's been in Lucerne since 1889. The idea is to put the viewer right in the middle of a scene, and the illusion is aided by some objects nearby. 

Circular paintings are rather rare as these things go. This turned out to be a little too big in some ways, as it has lost about a third of its size and now checks in about 30 feet high. It continues to succeed in its goals, that of showing the horrors of war and the generosity of the Swiss. 

It takes a big building to hold a painting so big. We must go inside.