The Last Day of a Condemned Man
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Plate: 10 3/8 × 6 5/16 in. (26.4 × 16.1 cm) Sheet: 10 5/8 × 6 11/16 in. (27 × 17 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1929
Accession Number
29.18.4(2)
Art Historical Context
This etching, created in 1833 by Célestin Nanteuil and published by Eugène Renduel, captures the haunting final moments of a prisoner awaiting execution. The work draws directly from Victor Hugo’s 1829 novel *The Last Day of a Condemned Man*, a powerful critique of capital punishment that resonated throughout Romantic-era France. Nanteuil, a leading figure in the Romantic movement, specialized in literary illustrations that conveyed intense emotion and dramatic tension. As an etching, the medium allowed for fine, expressive lines that heighten the scene’s psychological intensity while making ...
About the Artist
Eugène Renduel|Célestin Nanteuil (French|French) · 1798 |1813 –1874 |1873
French, Lormes 1798–1874 Beuvron|French (born Italy), Rome 1813–1873 Bourron-Marlotte