Currently not on view

The Parable of the Prodigal Son, No. III: The Return,

1881

James Tissot, French, 1836–1902
2013-114 d
Just as in the other prints from this series, Tissot relocated the scene of the son’s return to the present setting of a rain-coated dock on the River Thames, where pigs and cattle are being unloaded from a ship. As his older brother watches, the hungry and hopeless son falls to his knees in repentance, only to be welcomed by the warm embrace of his father, so passionate that the old man’s hat falls to the wet ground below.

Information

Title
The Parable of the Prodigal Son, No. III: The Return
Dates

1881

Maker
Medium

Etching

Dimensions

plate: 31.2 x 37.2 cm. (12 5/16 x 14 5/8 in.)
sheet: 50.2 x 61.8 cm. (19 3/4 x 24 5/16 in.)

Credit Line

Museum purchase, Felton Gibbons Fund

Object Number
2013-114 d
Place Made

Europe, England, London

Inscription

Signed and dated in plates below image, lower right corner : J.J. Tissot / 1881

Reference Numbers
Béraldi 132.51; Wentworth 60
Culture
Materials