May the cord break, plate 77 from The Disasters of War
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes
1815–1820
- Medium
- Etching, burnished aquatint or lavis, and drypoint on ivory wove paper with gilt edges
- Dimensions
- Image: 15.3 × 19.5 cm (6 1/16 × 7 11/16 in.); Plate: 17.3 × 21.8 cm (6 13/16 × 8 5/8 in.); Sheet: 24 × 34 cm (9 1/2 × 13 7/16 in.)
- Genre
- etching
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Tags
warprintprints and drawingetchingpaper (fiber product)
About
As in the nearby Charlatan’s Show, Goya here depicted a member of the Roman Catholic clergy in a critical light. A frocked priest walks a tightrope to keep his congregation distracted from the richness of his attire and its disparity with their rags. With his arms spread to maintain balance, he looks like a swooping bird of prey.
