The Collection
The American Wing Ancient Near Eastern Art Arms and Armor The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing Asian Art The Cloisters The Costume Institute Drawings and Prints Egyptian Art European Paintings European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Greek and Roman Art Islamic Art Robert Lehman Collection The Libraries Medieval Art Musical Instruments Photographs Antonio Ratti Textile Center Modern and Contemporary Art

Socrate au moment de prendre la ciguë

Jacques Louis David French

1787

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 634

Accusé par le gouvernement d’Athènes de renier le panthéon et de corrompre les jeunes gens par ses enseignements, Socrate se vit forcé de choisir : renoncer à ses convictions ou mourir en buvant la ciguë. David a représenté le philosophe discourant calmement de l’immortalité de l’âme devant ses disciples effondrés. Le tableau, dont le héros stoïque est librement inspiré du Phèdre de Platon, est peut-être le plus achevé des manifestes néoclassiques de David. John Boydell, graveur et éditeur, écrivit à Sir Joshua Reynolds qu’il s’agissait « du plus grand défi artistique depuis la chapelle Sixtine et les chambres de Raphaël […] ; une œuvre qui aurait fait honneur à l’Athènes de Périclès ».

#5184. Socrate au moment de prendre la ciguë

0:00

0:00

View Transcript

Custom framed to suit your space

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

The Death of Socrates, Jacques Louis David (French, Paris 1748–1825 Brussels), Oil on canvas

This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Fig. 1. Herm of Socrates, from a Greek original of the second half of the 4th century B.C., marble, 54.8 cm (Musei Capitolini, Rome; MC 0508). Possible source for David's figure.

Fig. 2. Infrared reflectogram (see Technical Notes)

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Fig. 3. Picture in frame: overall

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Fig. 4. Painting in frame: corner

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Fig. 5. Painting in frame: angled corner

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Fig. 6. Profile drawing of frame. W 7 11/16 in. 19.6 cm (T. Newbery)

Titre: Socrate au moment de prendre la ciguë

Artiste: Jacques-Louis David, Français, 1748–1825

Date: 1787

Technique: Huile sur toile

Dimensions: 129,5 x 196,2 cm

Crédits: Collection Catharine Lorillard Wolfe, fonds Wolfe, 1931

Accession Number: 31.45

Iron distribution map of The Death of Socrates

The Death of Socrates: New Discoveries

Technical examination of Jacques Louis David’s masterpiece reveals that the refinements seen in the artist’s preparatory drawings didn’t end when he began painting—rather, they continued through all stages of its execution.

A painting of the philosopher Socrates speaking before a crowd

Prisons Real and Imagined

In Jacques Louis David’s The Death of Socrates (1787), a parable of principle on the eve of the French Revolution.

One of The Met's European Paintings galleries, with Jacques Louis David's "Death of Socrates" at the center

Changing the Conversations among Our European Paintings

Curator Keith Christiansen takes a fresh look at Jacques Louis David's The Death of Socrates after its new installation in gallery 631.

Collage of images of public-domain artworks in The Met collection

Creating Access beyond metmuseum.org: The Met Collection on Wikipedia

Chief Digital Officer Loic Tallon reflects on the impact The Met's Open Access initiative has had in making the Museum's collection one of the most accessible on the internet.

Early 17th-century painting of the Last Supper showing Jesus at a table surrounded by his disciples

Copying Valentin

Curator Keith Christiansen highlights the aspects of Valentin de Boulogne's work that Neoclassical painter Jacques Louis David included in his own pictures.

Left: black chalk drawing of Socrates by Jacques Louis David. Right: mezzotint print of an executioner holding the head of John the Baptist

Michelangelo and More: Works of the Week Honoring 100 Years of Drawings and Prints at The Met

Assistant Curator Allison Rudnick presents this fall's highlights in the ongoing Work of the Week series celebrating the Department of Drawings and Prints' remarkable collection.

Black and white photograph of security manager Jose Rivero standing in a paintings gallery at The Met

Connections: Heroes

Security manager Jose Rivero contemplates the different types of hero archetypes, from comic book super heroes to religious figures.

Black and white photograph of educator Alice Schwarz in The Met galleries

Connections: Hands

Educator Alice Schwarz ruminates about how one's hands give away information about a person.

The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.

The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

The Met

European Paintings at The Met

The Met's celebrated European Paintings collection encompasses more than 2,500 works of art from the thirteenth through the early twentieth century.