Pyramids and Sphinx - Sun setting
1830
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1830
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
This drawing shows a desert scene with three big pyramids in the background. In the front, there’s a giant stone statue of a lion with a human head—the Sphinx—sitting near a river. Workers and animals are scattered around, some pulling heavy blocks of stone. The sky looks warm, like sunset, and the whole scene feels quiet but busy. The artist used thin, repeated lines to build up shadows and shapes, giving it a textured look. This style was common in sketches from that time. Look up cross-hatching to see how artists create depth with lines like these.
