The Fall of Phaeton

The Fall of Phaeton

Adolphe David

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Phaeton, son of the sun god Apollo, rashly insisted on driving his father's chariot. Here, we witness the outset of his inexorable descent through the heavens after losing control of the quadriga. For this tour de force, Adolphe David drew on ancient glyptic typologies. He cut through three strata to set off the foremost horse and clouds in ocher and made reins from the threadlike remains of the middle white layer. Equally finely characterized at the top left are three signs of the zodiac. All are set against deathly, polished jet black. The sizable gem was conceived as an exhibition performance; David often showed cameos at the Paris Salon.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.