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Johann Heinrich Ramberg

Auction of the Cupids

1799
Etching on ivory wove paper
28.8 × 38.7 cm (11.3 × 15.2 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

For the Auction of the Cupids , Johann Heinrich Ramberg combined his classicizing aspirations with frothy, titillating humor. The scene depicts winged putti being sold to the highest bidder in a verdant landscape. These charmed infants seem to gravitate naturally into the hands and under the skirts of the young and buxom; they are more reluctant to stay confined in the baskets of the elderly hags hoping for one more chance at love.

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