← Honoré Daumier

France, Prometheus and the Vulture, from "News of the day"

Original title: France, Prometheus and the Vulture, from "News of the day"

Artist

Honoré Daumier

Date

February 13, 1871

Medium

Lithograph on wove paper; first state of two, proof (Delteil)

Dimensions

Image: 8 7/8 × 7 7/16 in. (22.5 × 18.9 cm) Sheet: 13 1/8 × 9 13/16 in. (33.4 × 24.9 cm)

Credit line

The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1990

kurzbeschreibung

From the series 'News of the Day' comes this lithograph by Honoré Daumier, dated 13 February 1871. It shows Prometheus beset by an eagle and was executed as a black-and-white print on wove paper.

Description

On a rock lies naked Prometheus, arms outstretched, face contorted in pain. An eagle swoops down on him with wings spread wide. The layout feels deliberately unbalanced: the horizontal body is set against the diagonal movement of the bird. The background stays bare, a flat gray sky above the stone.

Context

The print was made during the Franco-Prussian War and the siege of Paris. Daumier interprets the ancient Prometheus as a symbol of France, exposed to Prussia's attacks. The lithograph was published in the satirical magazine 'Le Charivari'.

Impact

The expressive linework and the pointed body language create a palpable threat. Between the motionless, suffering Prometheus and the aggressively charging eagle, France's powerlessness in those months becomes vivid.

Technique

The lithograph was printed in black and white on wove paper. The drawing is rich in detail and shows a precise observation of the figures' posture and movement, characteristic of Daumier's lithographic work.

AI-generated description text

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)