Orpheus and Eurydice (recto) (c. 1761): Art, History and Details

Orpheus and Eurydice (recto) (c. 1761) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Jean-Honoré Fragonard (French, 1732–1806).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Quick drawings could serve a variety of purposes, and it is not always clear today why an artist created a particular sketch. This one may record a painting Fragonard saw during a journey to Italy, or capture an idea he was considering for a painting of his own. Orpheus, identified by the lute, grasps for his love Eurydice as she is pulled down into Hades. The snarling animals near his feet may represent Cerberus, the multiheaded guard dog of the underworld.

Object facts

• Title: Orpheus and Eurydice (recto)
• Date: c. 1761
• Creator attribution: Jean-Honoré Fragonard (French, 1732–1806)
• Culture: France
• Type: Drawing
• Technique: black chalk
• Dimensions: Sheet: 28.9 x 22.7 cm (11 3/8 x 8 15/16 in.)
• Collection: DR - French
• Department: Drawings
• Accession number: 2009.152.a

Collection credit

Gift of Joseph F. McCrindle

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.