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Aurora and Cephalus
About the Artwork
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.
Exhibition history
Girodet: Romantic Rebel. Musée du Louvre, Paris, France (September 19, 2005-January 2, 2006); The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (February 11-April 30, 2006); The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (May 22-August 27, 2006); Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (October 12, 2006-January 21, 2007).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Anne-Louis Girodet de Roucy-Trioson (French, 1767–1824)
- Date
- c.1810
- Medium
- oil on canvas
- 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
- Classification
- Painting
- Department
- Modern European Painting and Sculpture
- Credit line
- Gift of the Painting and Drawing Society of The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Accession no.
- 2002.101
More by Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson in museum collections
Portrait of the Katchef Dahouth, Christian Mameluke
Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson1804 · Painting
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00009440
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