Cleveland Museum of Art

The Proverbs: Two Heads are Better than One or Poor Folly

Francisco de Goya

Date

1816–1823 (printed c. 1863)

Medium

etching, aquatint, drypoint and engraving

Culture

Spain

Department

Prints

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The Proverbs are a group of 22 prints that are among the most powerful, original, and enigmatic of Goya's etchings. Although many of the scenes can be identified with proverbs, it is hard to judge the political, religious, or social connotations of these works. Many of the prints represent carnival themes, which Goya may have used as an allegory to express ideas concerning the state of Spain and his personal life.

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