May the cord break, plate 77 from The Disasters of War
1815/20, published 1863
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes Spanish, 1746-1828
Spain
As in the nearby Charlatan’s Show, Goya here depicted a member of the Roman Catholic clergy in a critical light. A frocked priest walks a tightrope to keep his congregation distracted from the richness of his attire and its disparity with their rags. With his arms spread to maintain balance, he looks like a swooping bird of prey.
Etching, burnished aquatint or lavis, and drypoint on ivory wove paper with gilt edges