French School Eighteenth Century, The Surprised Lovers, Original Drawing

French School circa 1770
Two lovers surprised in bed
Black pencil on paper
13 x 17 cm
Modern frame: 34 x 38 cm
This drawing was attributed to Gabriel de Saint Aubin (1724-1780). This is a convincing attribution because of the quality of the drawing and its theme, but since there is no real historical proof of this attribution, it seems more prudent to place it in due course. The theme, two young lovers surprised by a gentleman, the father ?, The husband? of the young woman, is typical of the late 18th century French culture, fond of libertine tales.