Allegory of Night, 17th century (red chalk on laid paper)

Formerly attributed to Charles Le Brun (1619-90). A winged figure accompanied by owls, bats and other nocturnal creatures depicts night-time. Possibly Hecate, possibly Morpheus, god of sleep and dreams, the figure’s dark veil contrasts with the moonlight radiating from the crescent moon beneath Artemis’s chariot. Veils and drapery were regarded as painting’s ornaments. Here, drapery not only decorates the body, the veil also forms a cartouche-like setting for Night. Drawn from below, the composition suggests a design for a ceiling; it is an accomplished and inventive copy of a scene from Le Brun’s famous ceiling for the pavilion of Aurora at Sceaux.