I recently read a story about a painting called “Checkmate” painted by Friedrich August Moritz Retzsch that used to hang in the Louvre Art Museum in Paris.
The painting depicts a chess match between the devil and Goethe’s Dr. Faust, who had sold his soul to the devil. It appears as if the devil has won. Faust has only the king, the queen, and a weak pawn left. The look on Faust’s face is one of abject despair. From across the chessboard the devil leers at him in anticipation of his expected victory. Ready to say, Checkmate! Continue reading