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Tomb with Death Enthroned as a Sphinx

ca. 1779–84
Not on view
Introduced to the rudiments of etching while a student in Paris, Desprez went on to master the more complicated technique of aquatint after being sent to study at the French Academy in Rome. Visits to ancient ruins may have stimulated his series of four tombs, large sepulchral fantasies executed in a grainy aquatint, lending them a timeworn patina. In this image from the series, a skeleton adorned like a king or pharaoh guards a tomb inscribed with pseudo-hieroglyphics.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Tomb with Death Enthroned as a Sphinx
  • Artist: Louis Jean Desprez (French, Auxerre 1743–1804 Stockholm)
  • Date: ca. 1779–84
  • Medium: Etching and aquatint, printed in brown ink, ii/ii
  • Dimensions: Sheet: 13 1/4 x 19 7/16 in. (33.7 x 49.3 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Janet Lee Kadesky Ruttenberg Fund, in honor of Colta Ives, 2012
  • Object Number: 2012.189
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Antoine de Chézy, Louis Jean Desprez French, Etching
Antoine de Chézy
Louis Jean Desprez
ca. 1772–76
The Capture of Selinus by Hannibal, Louis Jean Desprez French, Etching and aquatint with drypoint, state II/II
The Capture of Selinus by Hannibal
Louis Jean Desprez
n.d.
Ancient Scene with a Funeral Ceremony for an Actor, Louis Jean Desprez French, Pen and black ink and watercolor
Ancient Scene with a Funeral Ceremony for an Actor
Louis Jean Desprez
Louis Félix de La Rue
ca. 1777
Design for the Decoration of the Altar to be erected during the Holy Week, Dedicated to Monseigneur Christophe de Beaumont, Archbishop of Paris, Louis Jean Desprez French, Etching
Design for the Decoration of the Altar to be erected during the Holy Week, Dedicated to Monseigneur Christophe de Beaumont, Archbishop of Paris
Louis Jean Desprez
1769
Louis Jean Desprez French, Brush and brown wash over etching
A view of the Tomb of Mamia, in Pompeii
Louis Jean Desprez
Francesco Piranesi
n.d.

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