Arnold Böcklin
Murderer Pursued by the Furies, 1870
Öl auf Leinwand, 80,0 x 141,0 cm
1871 durch Adolf Friedrich Graf von Schack erworben
Inv. Nr. 11537
Murderer Pursued by the Furies
Böcklin did not balk at horrific subjects. Reports of a murder committed in Alsace prompted him to paint this picture. In classical mythology the Furies are goddesses of retribution who avenge serious crimes, notably family murders. Schack wrote: ‘It is certainly not the task of art to arouse terror in the manner of a ghost story; but terror is here ennobled by a magnificent conception and impresses us with all the force of a tragic scene.’