Diana on a Moonbeam and Mars
James Thornhill, English, 1675 - 1734
not dated
Pen and brown ink heightened with white on blue paper
Sheet: 7 3/4 × 4 5/8 in. (19.7 × 11.7 cm)
Support: 11 9/16 × 8 1/4 in. (29.3 × 20.9 cm)
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth: Gift of Jane and Raphael Bernstein
2010.84.126
Geography
Place Made: England, United Kingdom, Europe
Period
1600-1800
Object Name
Drawing
Research Area
Drawing
Not on view
Inscriptions
Lower right: Collector's Mark of Joshura Reynolds (L. 2364)
Label
A partially armored Mars, the Roman god of war, watches as Diana, goddess of the moon, descends on a moonbeam while attended by cherubs. The use of blue paper adds luminosity to the scene and evokes a feeling of mystery while mimicking the lighting of a moonlit encounter. James Thornhill painted murals in England, most notably on the interior of the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. This drawing reflects the style of Thornhill’s sketches for his murals, which were often based on classical myths or religious narratives. Unlike the other blue-paper works in this exhibition, this one uses the natural hue of the blue paper as a highlight and darkens the image with a brown wash. In this way, Thornhill demonstrates the flexibility of blue paper as a tool for artistic innovation.
From the 2025 exhibition Animal, Vegetable, Mineral: Making Colors in Europe, 1400–1800, curated by Elizabeth Rice Mattison, Andrew W. Mellon Curator of Academic Programming and Curator of European Art
Label written by Isabelle (Izzy) Lust '25, Class of 1954 Intern
Exhibition History
Animal, Vegetable, Mineral: Making Colors in Europe, 1400–1800, Harrington Gallery, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, September 6 - Fall 2026.
Provenance
Sir Joshua Reynold, P.R.A (L. 2364), date unknown; Christie's, New York, sale 6128, lot 113; sold to Jane and Raphael Bernstein, Ridgewood, New Jersey, June 8, 1999; lent to present collection, 2010; given to present collection, 2015.
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