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
In the late 1520s Michelangelo made a painting depicting Leda and the swan, a mythological story in which Zeus assumes the form of a swan to seduce the mortal woman Leda, producing two children with her. Michelangelo’s version was undeniably more erotic and sensuous than most previous treatments of the subject, as well as more famous. Although the original was lost, several copies of the composition were made from a cartoon (full-scale drawing) that was taken to France by one of Michelangelo’s pupils in the 1530s. This drawing by Adolphe Yvon suggests that Michelangelo’s distinctive sensual rendering of the subject persisted into the 1800s.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
74540
label
Leda and the Swan
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
74540
contentType
drawing
title
Leda and the Swan
description
In the late 1520s Michelangelo made a painting depicting Leda and the swan, a mythological story in which Zeus assumes the form of a swan to seduce the mortal woman Leda, producing two children with her. Michelangelo’s version was undeniably more erotic and sensuous than most previous treatments of the subject, as well as more famous. Although the original was lost, several copies of the composition were made from a cartoon (full-scale drawing) that was taken to France by one of Michelangelo’s pupils in the 1530s. This drawing by Adolphe Yvon suggests that Michelangelo’s distinctive sensual rendering of the subject persisted into the 1800s.
date
c. 1846–83
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q77897967
creators
53730
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 39.7 x 54.5 cm (15 5/8 x 21 7/16 in.)
cul
France, 19th century
accession
2015.451
Source extras
tec
Charcoal and gouache with touches of pastel
tombstone
Leda and the Swan, c. 1846–83. Adolphe Yvon (French, 1817–1893). Charcoal and gouache with touches of pastel ; sheet: 39.7 x 54.5 cm (15 5/8 x 21 7/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Muriel Butkin, 2015.451
supportMaterials
description
brown wove paper
collection
DR - French
inscriptions
inscription
lower right, in brown gouache: Ad. Yvon
creditline
Bequest of Muriel Butkin
updatedAt
2026-05-29 04:57:00.927000
sourceId
74540
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - French
med
Charcoal and gouache with touches of pastel
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
d7555ec547fc2ad9