End of The Valkyrie
1879
Lithograph in black with scraping on stone on thick ivory wove paper
22.6 × 27.5 cm (8.9 × 10.8 in)
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Not currently on view
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
In the finale of The Valkyrie, the second opera of The Ring cycle, Wotan arrives angrily waving his magical staff and places his favorite daughter Brünnhilde into a deep sleep as punishment for her repeated disloyalty. He then surrounds her by a ring of fire. Brünnhilde has disobeyed his wishes by first warning Siegmund of the impending battle with Hunding, and subsequently rescuing Sieglinde from Wotan. In the original story, Brünnhilde is suited in armor; here the artist has chosen to depict her more romantically in a diaphanous gown.
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