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Aurora and Cephalus
Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Triosonc.1810
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
The goddess of the dawn, Aurora, fell in love with the shepherd Cephalus. She eventually seized him at daybreak, bringing him to the heavens while he slept—the scene Girodet has painted here. Later, missing his wife, Procris, Cephalus begs to return. Aurora agrees, giving him a magic spear that kills every target, including his wife, when he mistakes her for an animal in the brush.
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Details
- Title: Aurora and Cephalus
- Creator: Anne-Louis Girodet de Roucy-Trioson (French, 1767–1824)
- Date Created: c.1810
- Physical Dimensions: Framed: 34.9 x 29.9 x 7 cm (13 3/4 x 11 3/4 x 2 3/4 in.); Unframed: 22.8 x 16.8 cm (9 x 6 5/8 in.)
- Type: Painting
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/2002.101
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Fun Fact: This myth subverts typical gender dynamics: usually a man captures a woman, but in this story the trope reversed.
- Department: Modern European Painting and Sculpture
- Culture: France, 19th century
- Credit Line: Gift of the Painting and Drawing Society of The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Collection: Mod Euro - Painting 1800-1960
- Accession Number: 2002.101
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