Daphnis and Gnathon
Marc Chagall
Daphnis and Gnathon
lithograph
1962
An original Marc Chagall lithograph print.
1962
Original lithograph printed in colors on Arches wove paper
A richly printed impression of the definitive state, from the edition of 250 (apart from the pencil-signed and numbered edition of 60). One of 44 color plates from the album Daphnis & Chloe, illustrating the 2nd century Greek text by Longus, published by Editions Verve, Paris, 1962; printed at Atelier Mourlot, Paris.
Catalog: Mourlot 343
16 ½ x 12 ½ inches
Daphnis and Chloe is the story of a boy (Daphnis) and a girl (Chloe), each of whom is designated for sacrifice to the gods at birth, but both manage to escape this fate. A goatherd named Lamon discovers Daphnis, and a shepherd called Dryas finds Chloe. Each decides to raise the child he finds as his own. Daphnis and Chloe grow up together, herding the flocks for their foster parents. They fall in love but, being naive, do not understand what is happening to them. Philetas, a wise old cowherd, explains to them what love is and tells them that the only cure is kissing. They do this. Eventually, Lycaenion, a woman from the city, educates Daphnis in love-making. Daphnis, however, decides not to test his newly acquired skill on Chloe, because Lycaenion tells Daphnis that Chloe “will scream and cry and lie bleeding heavily [as if murdered].” Throughout the book, Chloe is courted by suitors, two of whom (Dorcon and Lampis) attempt with varying degrees of success to abduct her. She is also carried off by raiders from a nearby city and saved by the intervention of the god Pan. Meanwhile, Daphnis falls into a pit, gets beaten up, is abducted by pirates, is courted by Gnathon a would-be suitor, and is very nearly raped. In the end, Daphnis and Chloe are recognized by their birth parents, get married, and live out their lives in the country.
