The Return of the Cattle

Cattle and their herders amble home through the golden air of a late afternoon, past a broken stone wall and a classical arch in the distance. Hubert Robert — known as “Robert of the Ruins” — was the great painter of Arcadian France, and this large canvas from the 1770s pairs his love of classical remains with a tender view of rural life. The low sun, the long shadows and the patient animals give the scene a calm, pastoral dignity.