Jean-Baptiste Mallet (Grasse 1759-1835 Paris)
Jean-Baptiste Mallet (Grasse 1759-1835 Paris)

A young man piercing the ear of a young girl seated on the knees of a woman, another bringing an earring

細節
Jean-Baptiste Mallet (Grasse 1759-1835 Paris)
A young man piercing the ear of a young girl seated on the knees of a woman, another bringing an earring
bodycolor
9 5/8 x 12 7/8 in. (243 x 328 mm.)
來源
Pierre Decourcelle, bought in January 1919 from Friedel for 5,250 francs.

拍品專文

Charlotte Gere pointed out that the subject of this drawing is a girl having her ears pierced. The man piercing the ear has previously sterilized his instrument with the flame of the candle on the mantlepiece, while the woman is holding the girl tight during the painful moment. Ear-piercing in the 18th Century symbolized the loss of innocence and the birth of vanity, represented by the statuette of the Vestal Virgin on the table to the left. Another famous treatment of the subject is in David Wilkie's The First Earring of 1835 in the Tate Gallery, London.