Delacroix's preparatory drawing for 'Liberty Leading the People' heads to Christie's London auction

A preparatory drawing for Eugène Delacroix's masterpiece 'Liberty Leading the People' will be auctioned at Christie's London on December 14, 2017, with an estimate of £700,000 to £1 million. The drawing, considered the closest surviving study to the final painting, already features the full pyramidal composition and all figures. The painting itself, housed at the Louvre, was created after the 1830 July Revolution and depicts Marianne leading the people, symbolizing the French Republic. Delacroix drew inspiration from the Venus de Milo (discovered in 1820 and exhibited at the Louvre since 1821) and Théodore Géricault's 'The Raft of the Medusa'. The auction is expected to potentially set a record for a Delacroix drawing.