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Lioness Tearing at the Chest of an Arab

A work made of soft ground etching and roulette on cream chine, laid down on white wove paper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of soft ground etching and roulette on cream chine, laid down on white wove paper.

Date:

1849

Artist:

Eugène Delacroix
French, 1798-1863

About this artwork

Delacroix’s Romantic fascination with the Oriental other and the savagery of nature comes to the fore in this delicate etching in which a turbaned Arab becomes a lioness’s prey. Pinioned by the lion’s mighty paws, the man no longer struggles but resigns himself to being rent asunder. The man’s eyes are in shadow while the animal’s are wide and fierce, a contrast underscoring the violence and the intimacy of the kill. Details such as the single slipper lying near the man’s foot and the cuffed short leggings emphasize his exotic origins.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Eugène Delacroix

Title

Lioness Tearing at the Chest of an Arab

Place

France (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1849

Medium

Soft ground etching and roulette on cream chine, laid down on white wove paper

Dimensions

Plate: 21.2 × 28.1 cm (8 3/8 × 11 1/8 in.); Sheet: 35 × 49 cm (13 13/16 × 19 5/16 in.)

Credit Line

Jane H. Gertz Memorial Fund

Reference Number

1985.401

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/104244/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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