V. Lunardi, Mrs Sage and G. Biggin in a Hot Air Balloon

The painting was created in 1785 by John Francis Rigaud, depicting Mrs Sage and G Biggin in a hot air balloon. It is an oil on canvas work measuring 50.5 cm by 36.5 cm. The artwork entered the collection of the Museo del Prado, where it remains on display.

The painting resides in the collection of the Museo del Prado in Madrid, where it is catalogued under the accession number P009682. Since its acquisition, the work has been featured in several exhibitions at the museum, including the 1995 retrospective on 18th‑century British portraiture and the 2002 showcase of early ballooning imagery. It was also part of the traveling exhibition "Ballooning in Art," which toured major European institutions between 2005 and 2007.

The piece measures 50.5 cm in height and 36.5 cm in width.

The painting was created by John Francis Rigaud in 1785 and is housed in the Museo del Prado. It portrays Mrs. Sage and Mr. Biggin ascending in a hot air balloon, surrounded by symbolic elements like a flag and hat. The work has been studied as an example of late 18th-century fascination with aerial exploration, reflecting broader cultural interest in scientific progress and human ambition during the Enlightenment era.

Its composition and subject matter align with period artistic trends that merged portraiture with emerging themes of technological innovation and spectacle.

John Francis Rigaud's 1785 canvas V. Lunardi, Mrs Sage and G. Biggin in a Hot Air Balloon entered the Museo del Prado collection and became a reference point for 18th-century depictions of ballooning, influencing later Romantic and Victorian aerial imagery. Its precise rendering of the balloon basket and period attire informed subsequent artists' compositions of flight, while its inclusion in the Prado's displays cemented Rigaud's reputation as a specialist in atmospheric genre scenes.

The work's composition was widely reproduced in travel literature on aerial navigation, shaping public perception of early balloon ascents and inspiring contemporaries such as J.M.W. Turner to explore similar themes of human ambition against the sky.

John Francis Rigaud’s 1793 canvas records an early aeronautical excursion, portraying Vincenzo Lunardi, his companion Mrs. Sage, and the aeronaut G. Biggin suspended in a hot‑air balloon. The scene unfolds against a luminous sky rendered in soft blues and golden hues, while the balloon’s open basket is draped with light fabric curtains. The work now belongs to the collection of the Museo del Prado.