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Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes

Nothing. The Event Will Tell, plate 69 from The Disasters of War

1812/20, published 1863
Etching, burnished aquatint, lavis, drypoint, and burin on ivory wove paper with gilt edges
14.4 × 19.7 cm (5.7 × 7.8 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

The sign resting on the skeletal remains reads “nada,” which means “nothing” in Spanish. Whether referring to the outcome of the war and suffering, the vindication of the dead, or the promise of an afterlife, the nihilism communicated in this image is some of the most intense in the series.

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