The Rape of Europa (1725–42): Art, History and Details

The Rape of Europa (1725–42) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Nicolas LeSueur (French, 1691–1764).

The work and its context

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

Whereas in the 16th and 17th centuries chiaroscuro woodcuts were the artist's original conception or copies of contemporaneous designs, in the 18th century the technique often served to replicate the most famous masterworks of the past, especially of 16th-century Italy. During the 1700s, chiaroscuro woodcuts were directly connected to famous art collections and depended on the support of wealthy patrons. Le Sueur produced numerous chiaroscuros for the Cabinet Crozat, two volumes published in 1729 and 1742 by Count Anne Claude Philippe de Caylus and Pierre Crozat. The books reproduced famous paintings and drawings in French collections. For most of Le Sueur's chiaroscuros for this project, the black lines were printed from etched metal plates prepared by others, instead of from a woodblock. However, he did cut all four blocks for The Rape of Europa himself.

Object facts

• Title: The Rape of Europa
• Date: 1725–42
• Creator attribution: Nicolas LeSueur (French, 1691–1764)
• Culture: France
• Type: Print
• Technique: chiaroscuro woodcut
• Collection: PR - Chiaroscuro
• Department: Prints
• Accession number: 1965.69

Collection credit

Mr. and Mrs. Charles G. Prasse Collection

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.