Description
La Calomnie, peinte par Apelles
dessein de Raphaël, qui est dans le Cabinet de Mr Crozat, gravé en cuivre par Charles Nicolas Cochin, et en bois par Nicolas le Sueur
Eau-forte et aquatinte imitant le clair obscur
Imprimé en brun-jaune
Gravé à l’eau-forte par Charles-Nicolas COCHIN père (Paris 1688 – Paris 1754)
Bois par Nicolas LE SUEUR (Paris 1691 – Paris 1764)
d’après un dessin de RAPHAËL
d’après une peinture d’APELLE
1725
Feuille : 340 x 450 mm
Coup de planche : 185 x 355 mm
A painting by Apelles described by Lucian as follows: « On the right of it sits Midas with very large ears, extending his hand to Slander while she is still at some distance from him. Near him, on one side, stand two women: Ignorance and Suspicion. On the other side, Slander is coming up, a woman beautiful beyond measure, but full of malignant passion and excitement, evincing as she does fury and wrath by carrying in her left hand a blazing torch and with the other dragging by the hair a young man who stretches out his hands to heaven and calls the gods to witness his innocence. She is conducted by a pale ugly man who has a piercing eye and looks as if he had wasted away in long illness; he represents envy. There are two women in attendance to Slander, one is Fraud and the other Conspiracy. They are followed by a woman dressed in deep mourning, with black clothes all in tatters: she is Repentance. At all events, she is turning back with tears in her eyes and casting a stealthy glance, full of shame, at Truth, who is slowly approaching ». (Source Welcome Collection)
La collection Crozat est un ensemble d’œuvres d’art constitué de dessins et de peintures acquis par Catherine II de Russie en 1772 auprès des héritiers de Louis Antoine Crozat grâce à la médiation de Denis Diderot. Une grande partie des œuvres est ensuite entrée au musée impérial de l’Ermitage. (source wikipédia)
