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An etching portrays several figures holding onto a seated man in the center of a dark room, with other figures in the background. At the left of the room, soldiers guard a door, allowing a man inside the room.

An etching portrays a seated man in the center of a dark room. Around him, a woman rests her head on top of his, another woman kisses his hand, and a third woman kneels on the ground in front of him, hugging his waist. At his feet, a man picks a lock that chains both of his ankles together. Behind them to the right, while an elderly woman sleeps in chair, a man pours liquid onto a rag held by another elderly woman. To the left, two soldiers stand by the door, holding it open to allow another man inside. Behind this man, a figure’s hand holds a large knife.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2019.259
People
Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki, German (Danzig, Poland 1726 - 1801 Berlin, Germany)
Title
Calas Bidding Farewell to His Family
Other Titles
Original Language Title: Les adieux de Calas à sa famille
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
1768
Culture
German
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/365371

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Etching on cream antique laid paper
Technique
Etching
Dimensions
image: 29.9 × 42.5 cm (11 3/4 × 16 3/4 in.)
plate: 34.2 × 44.5 cm (13 7/16 × 17 1/2 in.)
sheet: 43 × 58 cm (16 15/16 × 22 13/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: in plate, below image: LES ADIEUX DE CALAS, A SA FAMILLE. / je crains Dieu.....et n'aipoint d'autre crainte. / Racine Trag. d'Athalie.
  • inscription: lower center, graphite: Kna [?]
  • inscription: lower right, in plate, below image: Inv. peint, & Gravé par D. Chodowiecki â Berlin. 1768.

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[Galerie Paul Prouté, Paris], sold; to Harvard Art Museums, 2019

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

Standard Reference Number
Bauer 50

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Acquisition Fund for Prints
Accession Year
2019
Object Number
2019.259
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
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Publication History

  • Edouard Kopp, Elizabeth M. Rudy, and Kristel Smentek, ed., Dare to Know: Prints and Drawings in the Age of Enlightenment, exh. cat., Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2022), pp. 296-296, repr. p. 293 (detail) and p. 296 as fig. 2

Exhibition History

Related Works

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu