MUNKÁCSY Mihály
(1844–1900)

MILTON (REDUCTION)

1878
Oil on canvas
Museum of Fine Arts – Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest
Inv. no. 69.128T

Munkácsy’s interest in the fundamental questions of human existence led him to paint Milton. The work marked the beginning of a new period in his career. In the painting, the blind Milton dictates his epic poem, Paradise Lost to his daughters. The human tragedy, the tension felt in the scene, the attentiveness and devotion of the young girls made a great impression on both the public and the critics. Munkácsy sold the painting to the art dealer Charles Sedelmeyer, who also ordered from him the scaled-down version, or reduction, seen here. Milton brought Munkácsy worldwide acclaim: having won a gold medal for the work at the 1878 World Exhibition in Paris, it was taken on a European tour by Sedelmeyer. The large scale version of the painting can be seen for the last 145 years in the New York Public Library.