Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
The Sheepfold, Moonlight
(18th and 19th Centuries )
In this nocturnal scene, the waning moon throws a mysterious light across the plain extending between the villages of Barbizon and Chailly. Millet was recorded as saying of the solitary shepherd:
Oh, how I wish I could make those who see my work feel the splendors and terrors of the night! One ought to be able to make people hear the songs, the silences, and murmurings of the air. They should feel the infinite. . . .
Although educated and trained in Paris, Millet was born into a peasant family from the Normandy region of northern France. Millet drew on this background, specializing in scenes of peasant life. An outbreak of cholera in 1849 forced Millet to leave Paris with his family and settle in the village of Barbizon, where he became acquainted with the Barbizon artists Théodore Rousseau, Virgile Narcisse Diaz de la Peña, Constant Troyon, and Antoine-Louis Barye.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Chevalier A. de Knyff [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Sale, Vente C (Carlin), Paris, April 29, 1872, no. 19; Mme. William Hooper, 1872, by purchase [via the dealer Paul Durand-Ruel]; William T. Walters, Baltimore, 1884-1887, by purchase; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1894, by inheritance; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 2024-2025 | Reinstallation 2024: Art and Process. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 2019-2020 | Millet and Modern Art: Van Gogh to Dalí. Amsterdam: Van Gogh Museum, AJ Amsterdam; Saint Louis Art Museum, St. Louis. |
| 2012 | Public Property. |
| 2010-2011 | 19th Century Masterpieces from the Walters Art Museum. Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara; Jack S. Blanton Museum of Art, Austin. |
| 2008-2009 | In the Forest of Fontainebleau: Painters and Photographers from Corot to Monet. National Gallery of Art, Washington; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston. |
| 2004-2005 | The Road to Impressionism: Landscapes from Corot to Manet. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 2002-2004 | A Magnificent Age: Masterpieces from the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City; Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte. |
| 2000-2002 | Triumph of French Painting: Masterpieces from Ingres to Matisse. Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach; Dayton Art Institute, Dayton; Royal Academy of Arts, London; Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo. |
| 1998 | Before Monet: Landscape Painting in France and Impressionist Masters: Highlights from The Walters Collection. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1883 | Cent chefs d'oeuvres des collections parisiennes. Galerie Georges Petit, Paris. |
| 1867 | Exposition Universelle. Paris. |
| 1889-1890 | The Works of Antoine-Louis Barye. American Art Gallery (New York), New York. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 5/14/1941 | Treatment | cleaned; coated |
| 8/6/1991 | Treatment | cleaned |
Geographies
France (Place of Origin)
Measurements
Overall: H: 17 13/16 × W: 24 15/16 in. (45.3 × 63.4 cm)
Framed: H: 33 5/8 × W: 40 3/8 × D: 5 1/2 in. (85.4 × 102.6 × 14 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by William T. Walters, 1884-1887
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
37.30
