The Prayer, plate 6 from Paul et Virginie

Prints and Drawings

1795-97

Charles-Melchior Descourtis (French, 1753-1820)
after Jean Frédéric Schall (French, 1752-1825)

In this print the other characters keep the discovery of Virginie’s body a secret from Paul, because he has been inconsolable in the weeks since the shipwreck. This scene shows Paul, Domingue, and the narrator praying near the church where, unbeknownst to Paul, Virginie has already been buried. In the coming months, most of the characters will succumb to illness, insanity, or death as they are consumed by their grief, leaving only the narrator to recount the story.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Prints and Drawings

Artist: Charles Melchior Descourtis
Title: The Prayer, plate 6 from Paul et Virginie
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 1795
Medium: Etching and engraving in yellow, blue, red, and black on paper
Dimensions: Image: 37.5 × 41.2 cm (14 13/16 × 16 1/4 in.); Sheet, cut within platemark: 42 × 47.5 cm (16 9/16 × 18 3/4 in.)
Credit Line: The Joseph Brooks Fair Collection
Reference Number: 1926.480
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/28759/manifest.json

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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.

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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.

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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.