Le Doux Châtiment
More than five years ago I posted small images of this Adam Johan Braun oil painting from 1789 showing a nun birching a girl as two other girls look on in tears. The images were from an auction house and quickly vanished from the web after the auction was over. Well, much that is good eventually returns. Now, via another art dealer who gets no link because of intrusive watermarking practices, and courtesy of the watermark removal efforts of volunteers at the Wikimedia Commons, I can show you much nicer images of the painting, in higher resolution. Don’t forget to click these pictures to enlarge them!
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It seems to me the pieces of paper on the floor have something to with the punishment being administered. Was someone reading someone else’s mail? The open book on the table could very well be a punishment ledger, or a diary. Clearly the distress of the miscreants looking on is not merely empathy for the young lady being chastised, but also because they realize the same fate awaits them.
Wow! I always find it fascinating, and somehow reassuring, when I come across evidence that our brand of kink is nothing modern, but instead goes back centuries.