The Sphinx
1853
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1853
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
The painting shows a view of the Great Sphinx in Egypt. It's an old monument with a lion's body and a human head. The artist's experience as an archaeologist likely influenced this work, as he was involved in excavations of the Sphinx. He learned photography to document his findings. This skill helped him create detailed images like this one. You can learn more about this type of photography by looking into the technique of chiaroscuro.
![The Rest on the Flight into Egypt (recto); Sketch of a Sphinx [?] (verso)](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/25f9a663b49091e6/thumb.webp)
