# Blind Orion Searching for the Rising Sun

**Nicolas Poussin** (French, 1594–1665)  
1658  
Oil on canvas  
46 7/8 x 72 in. (119.1 x 182.9 cm)

Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 24.45.1. [The museum's record](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/437326).

## About this work

The blind giant Orion strides through a vast landscape towards the rising sun, which according to myth will restore his sight, guided by Cedalion, who stands on his shoulders, while Vulcan points the way from below and the goddess Diana watches from a cloud. Poussin painted it in 1658, late in his life, drawing on an ancient description of a painting and on contemporary interpretations of the myth as an allegory of nature, in which Orion stands for the clouds drawn up by the sun. Its mysterious grandeur has fascinated artists and writers ever since.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

Nicolas Poussin painted this in 1658, aged 64. It is now at The Met in New York.

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Nicolas Poussin](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/nicolas-poussin)

French, 1594–1665; born in Les Andelys; died in Rome

Poussin left Normandy for Paris and in 1624 settled in Rome, where he spent almost all his career. After an early public commission for St Peter’s, he worked mainly for private collectors on easel paintings of classical, biblical and mythological subjects, ordered with rigorous clarity and reasoned gesture. A brief, unhappy spell as court painter in Paris in 1640–42 confirmed his preference for Rome. His later landscapes give nature a calm, architectural order, and his example became the touchstone of the French Academy.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

## Facts

- Type: Paintings
- The artist was 64
- Real size: about 47 × 72 in (119 × 183 cm). The original is larger than our largest print, 18 × 24 in, so every print is a reduction.
- Century: 17th century
- Subjects: Orion, Diana, Landscapes
- Colour: black
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1137.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1137/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/blind-orion-searching-for-the-rising-sun-met-437326).