Study of a Female Nude (possibly for an unrealized allegorical painting) (recto)

Pierre Puvis de Chavannes

Cleveland Museum of Art

A sketch of a seated female nude on brown paper. The woman sits on a cloth with her knees bent and her right elbow on her knee. Her head is tilted down and to the right, with her hair cascading over her left shoulder. The drawing is in charcoal, with darker shading on her hair and cloth. The woman's body is mostly nude. In the background, there are faint outlines of buildings or structures, drawn in a simple, sketchy style. The paper is brown with a visible texture. The sketch is signed "P.P.C." near the bottom left. There are some numbers written in the top corners: "314" in red and "B12" in black.