Little Briar Rose (Sleeping Beauty)

1836

Eugen Napoleon Neureuther

(German, 1806–1862)

Culture

Germany, 19th century

Medium

steel etching

Measurements

Platemark: 66.5 x 50 cm (26 3/16 x 19 11/16 in.); Sheet: 72.5 x 54.5 cm (28 9/16 x 21 7/16 in.)

Credit Line

John L. Severance Fund 1993.133

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Location

Not on view

Description

Eugen Napoleon Neureuther depicted a key episode from a classic fairy tale. The title character in Little Briar Rose is awakened from an enchanted sleep by a prince’s kiss. Neureuther centered the composition on the meeting with the prince that leads to the story’s happy ending. His portrayal coincided with a revived interest in such folktales in Germany during the 1800s, culminating in the publication of the Brothers Grimm’s Children’s and Household Tales in 1812. Neureuther used that book’s versions of the two tales as source material, even including a story’s text in one print.