Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
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.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
167134
label
Orpheus and Eurydice (recto)
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
167134
contentType
drawing
title
Orpheus and Eurydice (recto)
description
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.
date
c. 1761
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79998307
creators
2002
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 28.9 x 22.7 cm (11 3/8 x 8 15/16 in.)
cul
France, 18th century
accession
2009.152.a
Source extras
tec
black chalk
tombstone
Orpheus and Eurydice (recto)
, c. 1761. Jean-Honoré Fragonard (French, 1732–1806). Black chalk; sheet: 28.9 x 22.7 cm (11 3/8 x 8 15/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Joseph F. McCrindle, 2009.152.a
collection
DR - French
creditline
Gift of Joseph F. McCrindle
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:37:36.491000
sourceId
167134
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - French
med
black chalk
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
d314f2f6828688dd