Eugène Delacroix

Charles Soulier, Saint-Mammès-sur-Loing (a gift from the artist)
Paul Soulier, Avon (son of the above, by 1877, until circa 1885)
Private collection, Denmark (by 1929)
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, 9 November 2000, lot 99
Private collection (purchased at the above sale)

Paris, École des Beaux-Arts, Exposition Eugène Délacroix, 1885, no. 203

Alfred Robaut, L'Oeuvre complet d'Eugène Delacroix: peintures, dessins, gravures, lithographies, Paris, 1885, vol. I, p. 480, no. 116, illustrated 
Haavard Rostrup, 'Delacroix og hans Arbejder i Danske Samlinger', in Kunstmuseets Aarsskrift, Copenhagen, vols. XVI-XVII, 1929-1931, pp. 180 & 184
Christina Merchant, 'Delacroix's Tragedy of Desdemona', in Shakespeare's Survey, vol. XXI, 1968, p. 84
L.R. Bortolatto, L'opera pittorica complete di Delacroix, Milan, 1972, p. 93, no. 112, illustrated
Pierre Georgel and L.R. Bortolatto, Tout l'œuvre peint de Delacroix, Paris, 1975, p. 93, no. 112, catalogued & illustrated (with Robaut's illustration)
Lee Johnson, The Paintings of Eugène Delacroix: A Critical Catalogue, Oxford and New York, 1981, vol. I, p. 204, no. L98 (as lost); Oxford, 1986, vol. III, cited under p. 126, no. 304
G.A. Rodetis, 'Delacroix: The Romantic Sensibility Visualized through the Poetry of Shakespeare and Byron' (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), 1981, pp. 36, 111, 113-15, 285, 214
Lee Johnson, The Paintings of Eugène Delacroix: A Critical Catalogue, Fourth Supplement and Reprint of Third Supplement, Oxford, 2002, p. 6, no. L98 (new number, 107a), p. 6, pl. 5, illustrated

Oil on paper laid on canvas. There is a pattern of hairline paint shrinkage overall. Ultraviolet light reveals a relatively even varnish which fluoresces opaquely, however signs of retouching are visible notably addressing the pattern of paint shrinkage near the lower edge in the chair leg, in the figure's hair and in a central vertical band above her head, and to the left and above the arch of the window. Otherwise the overall appearance of the work is good and it is ready to hang. Presented in a decorative gilt frame, with some small ornament losses.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The subject of the present work is taken from the scene of the Willow Song in Shakespeare's Othello (IV. iii). Delacroix had seen a production of the play in London in the summer of 1825, and the present work probably dates to that time.