The Murder of Polonius (Le Meurtre de Polonius), from the Hamlet series
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The Murder of Polonius (Le Meurtre de Polonius), from the Hamlet series
Artwork Details
Artist/Maker
Eugène Delacroix
French, 1798–1863
French, 1798–1863
Date
1834–1843, printed 1843–1864
Medium
Black and white lithograph on wove paper
Accession #
73.44
Dimensions
Please contact the Museum for more information.
Location
Currently Not on View
Description
Alerted by a voice, Hamlet, sword drawn, rushes to a curtain in his mother’s room behind which Polonius is hiding to spy on the prince’s conversation with Gertrude. In the next moment, thinking the spy is Claudius, Hamlet will impale the hapless courtier with the words, “How now! a rat? Dead for a ducat, dead!”
The sparse setting focuses the viewer’s full attention on the action itself, creating a sense of suspense.
Credit
Purchase in honor of Mrs. Robert Wells, President 1972-1973 of the Members GuildCheck This Out
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Cover Page: Œuvres Uniques à l’eau-forte D’Eugène Delacroix,
Cover Page: Œuvres Uniques à l’eau-forte D’Eugène Delacroix
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The Death of Ophelia (Mort d’Ophélie), from the Hamlet series,
The Death of Ophelia (Mort d’Ophélie), from the Hamlet series
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A Nobleman from the Time of Francis I from Œuvres Uniques à l’eau-forte D’Eugène Delacroix,
A Nobleman from the Time of Francis I from Œuvres Uniques à l’eau-forte D’Eugène Delacroix
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Hamlet Tries to Follow His Father’s Ghost (Hamlet Veut Suivre L’Ombre de Son Pere), from the Hamlet series,
Hamlet Tries to Follow His Father’s Ghost (Hamlet Veut Suivre L’Ombre de Son Pere), from the Hamlet series