The Monkey and the Cat
probably 1670s
- Medium
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 62.2 × 73.7 cm
- Status
- In Museum Collection
- Collect24 Art ID
- C24-111374
This picture interprets one of Aesop’s ancient Greek fables (or probably the more contemporary interpretation by Jean de la Fontaine, even more famous at the time), which warns of the dangers of flattery. A monkey sweet-talks a cat into pulling scalding chestnuts out of the fire. The cat finishes the risky and painful task to discover that the monkey has already gobbled up nearly all of them.
Provenance
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of The Butkin Foundation, 1979.82
Registry history
- probably 1670s — Recorded in the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Registered on Collect24
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