Fine Art

The Judgement of Paris — History & Facts

A group of figures gathers in a lush landscape, with trees and foliage at the left and reeds at the lower right. A dog sits beside the seated male, its head turned to the left. Above the main group, a winged figure flies horizontally, holding a wreath, her body arched as she reaches toward the central women.

In the upper section, a radiant chariot drawn by horses moves through the clouds, carrying a figure with a halo or crown. Two horsemen ride ahead of the chariot, their bodies angled forward as if in motion. The composition is densely packed, with overlapping bodies and a strong sense of movement, especially in the upper register.

The engraving technique creates a rich play of light and shadow, using fine hatching and cross-hatching to model the forms and suggest texture in skin, cloth, and landscape. Details such as the feathers of the winged figures, the fur of the dog, and the leaves in the foreground are rendered with careful line work. On the far right, two reclining male figures rest among reeds, one holding a long staff or scepter and the other with an arm draped around his knee.

In the upper right, a muscular male figure with a beard reclines on a cloud, holding a staff and accompanied by an eagle at his side. The background landscape fades into a softly rendered distant hillside with sparse trees and a grazing animal near the left edge. The title The Judgment of Paris appears in museum and catalogue sources for this work. The subject includes Juno, a chariot, a goddess, Athena, Venus, a dog, and a horse, according to descriptive sources.

This engraving is associated with several collections, including the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Sources: Metropolitan Museum of Art, record 19.74.1 · Wikidata Q18579333 · Image source (Wikimedia Commons)

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