Dramatic Scene with Monks in a Crypt
In this scene evocative of the Middle Ages, monks process into a Gothic crypt bearing a corpse in an open casket. At the moment they enter the stagelike space, their brethren, having opened a tomb to receive the body, discover that it is already occupied, sparking a dramatic stir. The precise literary source for this composition, believed to date to the 1820s, continues to elude scholars, but the ghoulish scenario was a staple for Fragonard and his contemporaries. The painter is today overshadowed by his father, Jean Honoré Fragonard, but he was one of the most versatile and sought-after artists of his generation.
Artwork Details
- Title: Dramatic Scene with Monks in a Crypt
- Artist: Alexandre Evariste Fragonard (French, Grasse 1780–1850 Paris)
- Medium: Oil on canvas
- Dimensions: 28 5/8 x 35 7/8 in. (72.7 x 91.1 cm)
- Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: The Whitney Collection, Gift of Wheelock Whitney III, and Purchase, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. McVeigh, by exchange, 2003
- Object Number: 2003.42.30
- Curatorial Department: European Paintings
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