Pyramus and Thisbe
early 17th–mid 17th century
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, over black chalk
Dimensions
sheet: 7 3/16 x 5 3/16 in. (18.3 x 13.2 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Guy Wildenstein Gift, 2010
Accession Number
2010.370
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the intimate drawing *Pyramus and This*, created in the early to mid-17th century, artists Cornelis Schut, Dominique Joseph Eisen, and Adriaen van de Vel evoke the tragic tale from Ovid's *Metamorphoses*. This ancient myth of star-crossed lovers—separated by a wall, united only in death through a heartbreaking misunderstanding—resonates with themes of love and suffering, as hinted by the tags of anguished men, women, and lovers. The work captures a pivotal moment of despair, rendered on a modest sheet measuring just 7 3/16 x 5 3/16 inches, now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Draw...