# The Muse

- By: Henri Fantin-Latour (French, 1836-1904)
- Date: 1886
- Medium: Lithograph in black with scraping on stone on ivory wove paper
- Classification: Print
- Dimensions: Image: 22.9 × 15.2 cm (9 1/16 × 6 in.); Sheet: 32.5 × 25.4 cm (12 13/16 × 10 in.)
- Culture: France
- Credit line: The Charles Deering Collection
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/44059)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/5c86113e-6461-2cef-6a9d-69f3893722e6/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Paying homage to the composer, Fantin depicts Richard Wagner seated at a desk in front of an open book with a plume in hand. The figure of a muse bearing a palm leaf, a symbol of divine inspiration and genius, embraces the composer.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0