The Triumph of Neptune (1766 or later): Art, History and Details

The Triumph of Neptune (1766 or later) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Charles Joseph Natoire (French, 1700–1777).

The work and its context

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

Natoire produced this drawing based on a fresco by Guillaume Courtois, known as Il Borgognone (1628–1679), that decorates a vaulted ceiling in the Palazzo Dorio-Pamphili in Valmontone. Carrying his trident, Neptune skims the ocean waves in a chariot attended by the gods Nereus and Oceanus, his son, Triton, and a dolphin. Able to raise tempests and calm the sea, Neptune gestures toward darkened clouds where two blowing faces personify the winds. Natoire’s fluid brushstrokes and vibrant use of color exemplify the characteristic sensuality of his watercolors.

Object facts

• Title: The Triumph of Neptune
• Date: 1766 or later
• Creator attribution: Charles Joseph Natoire (French, 1700–1777)
• Culture: France
• Type: Drawing
• Technique: Watercolor and black chalk on two sheets of cream laid paper
• Dimensions: Image: 23.8 x 34.1 cm (9 3/8 x 13 7/16 in.); Mounted: 34 x 44 cm (13 3/8 x 17 5/16 in.)
• Collection: DR - French
• Department: Drawings
• Accession number: 2013.48

Collection credit

Severance and Greta Millikin Trust

Further reading listed by the museum

• Lemonedes: Heather. “2013 Acquisitions: Prints.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 54, no. 2 (March/April 2014): 18.

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.