print study;
drawing
- Museum number
- 1900,0824.175
- Description
-
'Prometheus chained'; preliminary study for Flaxman's illustrations to "The Tragedies of Æschylus", pl 2; three nude men placing chains around Prometheus's wrists, he half-kneeling on a block. c. 1792-1793
Pen and grey ink, over graphite on paper watermarked '[J. Honig & Z]oonen'
Verso: same subject
Graphite
- Production date
- 1792-1793 (circa)
- Dimensions
-
Height: 236 millimetres
-
Width: 332 millimetres
- $Inscriptions
-
- Curator's comments
- Engraved by Thomas Piroli and published by J Matthews, 441 Strand, Jan 12, 1795. The original drawings were in the possession of the Countess Dowager Spencer who commissioned the series from Flaxman in 1794 while he was in Rome (some of the original drawings are now in the Royal Academy, for which see cat. nos.23, 24 in Martin Myrone, 'Gothic Nightmares: Fuseli, Blake and the Romantic Imagination', exh. Tate Britain, 2007). This was after the enormous success of his two earlier series based on Homer's 'Iliad' and 'Odyssey', also engraved by Piroli. All three publications exerted a profound influence over artists across Europe, who imitated his unmodulated line with few tonal and textural effects, reflecting an expression of classical purity.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
1969, BM, 'Royal Academy Draughtsmen 1769-1969', no.211
1972 Sep-Nov, Council of Europe, London, 'Age of Neo-classicism', no.574
1979 Apr-Jun, Kunsthalle, Hamburg, 'Flaxman', no. 105
1979 Jul-Sep, Thorwaldsen Museum, 'Flaxman', no. 105
1979 Oct-Dec, RA, 'Flaxman', no. 105
- Associated titles
Associated Title: Prometheus
- Acquisition date
- 1900
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- 1900,0824.175
