Artwork Information

Ancient Night – the towering female figure with the dark cloak – points with an upraised arm to breaking day, while on the left Charon (Death) flees in the boat. The upraised male arms in the foreground are those of Oceanus (the Great Father) who raises pearls to Night.

Recent research by Gallery paper conservators has demonstrated that a number of the drawings now in Auckland Art Gallery’s collection came from an album. A keen collector of entomological drawings, Fuseli may have removed the originals in order that he could use the paper to which they had been stuck.