The Angelus
1857-1859
Two peasants stand in a vast, harvested field at dusk, their heads bowed in solemn prayer as a distant church bell rings the Angelus. Jean-François Millet captured this quiet, deeply spiritual moment in 1859, elevating the humble daily lives of rural workers to the level of high art. The painting became a massive sensation, sparking a fierce bidding war in the 1880s that drove its price to astronomical heights. It even inspired Salvador Dalí to obsess over its hidden psychological meanings, claiming the basket between the figures was actually a coffin for a dead child!
- Technique
- Oil on canvas
- Material
- Canvas
- Dimensions
- 55.5 cm × 66 cm
Location: Musée d'Orsay, Paris
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