CARAN D'ACHE

caran d'ache, the pseudonym (meaning "lead-pencil") of emmanuel poire (1858-1909), french artist and illustrator, who was born and educated at moscow, being the grandson of one of napoleon's officers who had settled in russia. he determined to be a military painter, and when he arrived in paris from russia he found an artistic adviser in detaille. he served five years in the army, where the principal work allotted to him was the drawing of uniforms for the ministry of war. he embellished a short-lived journal, _la vie militaire_, with a series of illustrations, among them being some good-tempered caricatures of the german army, which showed how accurately he was acquainted with military detail. his special gift lay in pictorial anecdote, the story being represented at its different stages with irresistible effect, in the artist's own mannered simplicity. much of his work was contributed to _la vie parisienne_, _le figaro illustre_, _la caricature_, _le chat noir_, and he also issued various albums of sketches, the _carnet de cheques_, illustrating the panama scandals, _album de croquis militaires et d'histoire sans legendes_, _histoire de marlborough_, &c., besides illustrating a good many books, notably the _prince kozakokoff_ of bemadaky. he died on the 26th of february 1909. a collection of his work was exhibited at the fine art society's rooms in london in 1898. the catalogue contained a prefatory note by m.h. spielmann. carapace (a fr. word, from the span, _carapacho_, a shield or armour), the upper shell of a crustacean, tortoise or turtle. the covering of the armadillo is called a carapace, as is also the hard case in which certain of the infusoria are enclosed.