Eugène Delacroix and Cadart & Luquet
Arabs of Oran
1833, published 1865
Scroll
Physical Qualities
Etching, drypoint, roulette, engraving, and bitten tone, Sheet: 320 x 420 mm. (12 5/8 x 16 9/16 in.)
Plate: 174 x 215 mm. (6 7/8 x 8 7/16 in.)
Portfolio/Series
From the series "Oeuvre unique à l'eau-forte d'Eugène Delacroix"
Credit Line
The George A. Lucas Collection, purchased with funds from the State of Maryland, Laurence and Stella Bendann Fund, and contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations throughout the Baltimore community
Object Number
1996.48.4959
Though the two men in the foreground of this print appear
to be at rest, they remain armed—note the long rifle lying
beside the reclining figure. Eugène Delacroix used a variety
of tools to create the textured, sandy ground and sparse
vegetation surrounding the two men. Together, the gun and
the terrain suggest two hazards: environmental danger and
human or animal attacks.
Delacroix served as the official artist of the diplomatic
mission sent by King Louis-Philippe of France to Sultan
Abd al-Rahman bin Hicham of Morocco in 1832, the first
following France’s invasion of Algeria. Drawings made
during that journey formed the basis for this print.
Delacroix documented that these men are from Oran, a
port city in northwestern Algeria and a stop on the
diplomatic mission’s route.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by purchase, 1996; The Maryland Institute College of Art,
through Henry Walters, Baltimore, by bequest 1909; from George A. Lucas, Paris
through Henry Walters, Baltimore, by bequest 1909; from George A. Lucas, Paris
Jay Fisher, BMA, "Three Master Printmakers from the Nineteenth Century: Eugene Delacroix, Edouard Manet, Mary Cassatt," March 17- May 30, 1993.
Sona Johnston, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A View Toward Paris: The Lucas Collection of 19th-Century French Art," October 1, 2006 - December 31, 2006.
Joanna Karlgaard and Robin Owen Joyce, BMA, "Deconstructing Nature: Environmental Transformation in the Lucas Collection," August 27, 2025 - January 11, 2026.
Sona Johnston, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A View Toward Paris: The Lucas Collection of 19th-Century French Art," October 1, 2006 - December 31, 2006.
Joanna Karlgaard and Robin Owen Joyce, BMA, "Deconstructing Nature: Environmental Transformation in the Lucas Collection," August 27, 2025 - January 11, 2026.
Inscribed: Signed and titled in plate: lower center "Arabes d'Ornan.-"; lower right "Delacroix"
Markings: Watermark: Aqua Fortistes Stamp: upper right "28" Collector's stamp: verso "M.I. / LUCAS / COLLECTION" (Lugt 1695c)
