The Sacrifice of the Rose, c. 1780, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, French, 1732-1806, 16 5/8 x 13 in. (42.2 x 33.0 cm)21 3/4 x 18 1/8 in. (55.3 x 46.0 cm) (board)26 1/16 x 23 1/16 x 1 in. (66.2 x 58.6 x 2.5 cm) (outer frame), Brush and gray and brown wash, red and yellow watercolor, over black chalk on paper, France, 18th century, In this highly finished drawing, two lovers are represented as mythical heroes partaking in a sacred ritual. In a cloud-filled ancient temple, a beautiful maiden offers a rose to Cupid, whose statue is perched high on a pedestal. A handsome winged manvariously identified as Eros, Amor, or Hymen (god of marriage, whose attribute is a torch)hovers near her, gazing attentively as he torches her flower and she swoons in rapture. Quite obviously this is an allegorical representation of sexual ecstasy and a woman’s loss of virginity.