
Read the visual description
This image depicts a pastoral scene with mythological elements. It shows a group of reclining figures in the foreground, surrounded by a dense landscape with foliage and architectural elements like a barrel and a stone structure. A statue of a draped, vine-covered figure stands to the left. Detailed cross-hatching and line work create depth and texture. The landscape includes a sky with swirling clouds, and the arrangement of figures suggests a narrative or allegorical theme, possibly related to Bacchus or a similar mythological subject.
National Gallery of Art · Print
Bacchanal
Giovanni David
- Date
- 1775
- Medium
- etching on laid paper
- Dimensions
- sheet: 30.2 × 20.6 cm (11 7/8 × 8 1/8 in.) (cut to platemark)
- Classification
- Accession number
- 2013.106.1
- Credit line
- Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
- Time span
- 1751 to 1775
- Department
- CG-E
Subjects and terms
- etching
- classical
- mythology
Provenance
Justinus Kerner, Budapest (similar to Lugt 1567b). (sale, Galerie Bassenge, Berlin, 30 May 2013, no. 5336); (via David Tunick, Inc., New York); purchased by NGA, 2013.
Inscription
lower left in plate: David Gen. Inv. fecit; lower center in plate: ... vino pellite curas Hor. Lib. I Od. 7; by later hand, upper center verso in graphite:Giovanni David (1743 - 1790); by later hand, lower center verso under collector's mark: Lugt 1567b; by later hand, lower right verso in graphite: P
Watermarks
Crowned Strassburg lily with ICV
NGA object ID 163320. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.