The Murder of Polonius (Le Meurtre de Polonius), from the Hamlet series
Eugène Delacroix
French, 1798–1863
Details
Title
The Murder of Polonius (Le Meurtre de Polonius), from the Hamlet series
Artist/Maker
Eugène Delacroix (French, 1798–1863)
Date
1834–1843, printed 1843–1864
Medium
Black and white lithograph on wove paper
Dimensions
9 11/16 × 7 5/8 inches
Credit
Purchase in honor of Mrs. Robert Wells, President 1972-1973 of the Members Guild
Accession #
73.44
Location
Currently not on view
Alerted by a voice, Hamlet, sword drawn, rushes to a curtain in his mother’s room behind which Polonius is hiding to spy on the prince’s conversation with Gertrude. In the next moment, thinking the spy is Claudius, Hamlet will impale the hapless courtier with the words, “How now! a rat? Dead for a ducat, dead!” The sparse setting focuses the viewer’s full attention on the action itself, creating a sense of suspense.
More from this Artist
Hamlet and Horatio Before the Gravediggers (Hamlet et Horatio Devant les Fossoyeurs), from the Hamlet series
Eugène Delacroix
Hamlet Attempts to Kill the King (Hamlet Tente de Tuer le Roi), from the Hamlet series
Eugène Delacroix