Josephine and the Fortune-Teller
Painting by David Wilkie
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Josephine and the Fortune-Teller is an 1837 history painting by the British artist David Wilkie.[1] It depicts a story about the young Joséphine de Beauharnais visiting a fortune teller on her native island of Martinique, who predicts her future in France as the wife of Emperor Napoleon.[2]
| Josephine and the Fortune-Teller | |
|---|---|
| |
| Artist | David Wilkie |
| Year | 1837 |
| Type | Oil on canvas, history painting |
| Dimensions | 211 cm × 158 cm (83 in × 62 in) |
| Location | Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh |
The painting was produced at the suggestion of William Knighton and was commissioned by the politician John Abel Smith.[3] The previous year Wilkie had produced a painting featuring Josephine's husband Napoleon and Pius VII at Fontainebleau.
It was exhibited at the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition in London.[4] Today the painting is in the collection of the Scottish National Gallery, in Edinburgh, having been purchased in 1949.[5]
