Apollo and the Muses Awakened by the Call of Fame

Apollo and the Muses Awakened by the Call of Fame — Palma il Giovane. 1590s.

Medium: pen and brown ink and brush and brown wash over graphite. Dimensions: Sheet: 20.4 x 26.1 cm (8 1/16 x 10 1/4 in.); Secondary Support: 26.3 x 31.9 cm (10 3/8 x 12 9/16 in.).

Collection record: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

Here a barely visible Apollo, sleeping in the upper left background, and the nine muses are roused by the allegorical figure of Fame, who flies overhead with a trumpet. This dynamic scene signifies a reawakening of the arts. The loosely arranged clusters of figures and natural forms also suggest a harmonious relationship between humanity and the environment. This drawing, with its heavily subdued details and attention to the overall impact of contrast and design, is characteristic of Venetian draftsmanship in the late 1500s, and was valued by the small circle of Venetian intellectuals for whom Palma produced many similar mythological works.

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.