A Man Trapped between a Lion and a Serpent
1790s
Medium
pen and brown ink with gray wash on laid paper, laid down on an old mount
Dimensions
sheet: 22.7 × 18.9 cm (8 15/16 × 7 7/16 in.) mount: 40.7 × 33.8 cm (16 × 13 5/16 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Joseph F. McCrindle Endowment Fund
Accession Number
2018.60.1
Art Historical Context
Created in the 1790s by British artist Richard Cosway, *A Man Trapped between a Lion and a Serpent* captures a moment of intense drama through delicate pen and brown ink with gray wash. Cosway, celebrated for his elegant portrait miniatures of Regency society, here demonstrates his skill in a more expressive medium. The sheet’s compact size invites close viewing, allowing the fine lines and subtle tonal washes to convey movement and emotion with remarkable economy. The subject presents a man caught in mortal danger, flanked by a roaring lion and a coiling serpent. Such allegorical scenes were...
About the Artist
Richard Cosway
The most fashionable miniaturist of his day, Cosway was known for his elegant portraits. His large-scale portraits are considered less successful. He was friends with the Prince of Wales (later Prince Regent). Comment on works: religious, Portraits, mythology, miniatures