Don Quixote and Sancho Panza
19th century
Medium
Black chalk and gray wash on wove paper
Dimensions
Sheet: 7 7/8 x 11 3/4 in. (20 x 29.8cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1927
Accession Number
27.152.1
Tags
Art Historical Context
Honoré Daumier's *Don Quixote and Sanchoanza* captures the timeless duo from Miguel de Cervantes' 17th-century novel in a lively 19th-century drawing. Created amid France's Romantic era, Daumier master caricaturist and social commentator—produced numerous works inspired by the idealistic knight-errant Don Quixote and his squire Sancho Panza. This sheet, measuring just 7 7/8 x 11 3/4 inches, likely served as a preparatory study or standalone sketch, evoking the pair's adventures on horseback amid a world of illusion and reality. Rendered in black chalk and gray wash on wove paper, the medium h...
About the Artist
Honoré Daumier · 1810–1879
Honoré-Victorin Daumier (1808-1879) was a prolific French printmaker, caricaturist, painter, and sculptor whose works offered incisive commentary on the social and political life of 19th-century France. Known as the 'Michelangelo of Caricature,' Daumier produced over 4,000 lithographs, 500 paintings, 1,000 drawings, and 100 sculptures during his lifetime. His biting political satire led to his imp...