The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 24, 2025

Orpheus and Eurydice (recto)

c. 1761

Jean-Honoré Fragonard

(French, 1732–1806)
France, 18th century
black chalk
Sheet: 28.9 x 22.7 cm (11 3/8 x 8 15/16 in.)
Gift of Joseph F. McCrindle 2009.152.a
Location: Not on view

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.
  • Ex collection: [Lucien Goldschmidt, New York, 1980]
    Aware of the Cleveland Museum of Art's fine collection of Italian and French drawings, Joseph McCrindle has given five sheets, five Italian and one French, to the CMA. Please see no. 1 for ex collections.
  • Elegance and Intrigue: French Society in 18th-century Prints and Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 16-November 6, 2016).
  • {{cite web|title=Orpheus and Eurydice (recto) |url=false|author=Jean-Honoré Fragonard|year=c. 1761|access-date=24 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2009.152.a