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Archive photograph of the previous version: painting by Titian: Sisyphus climbs a slope, a huge rock on his shoulders.

Previous version1548–1549

Sisyphus, bent forward, legs braced on a rocky slope, pushes a heavy steel safe with his shoulder and hands.

Current version2026

Titian, Sisyphus, Museo del Prado, Madrid

Reproduction: Museo Nacional del Prado, via Wikimedia CommonsPublic domainImage source

Acc. no. GLI.2026.011 111

The Punishment of Sisyphus

King of Corinth, whom Homer called ‘craftiest of men’.

At the GLiTCH Museum, Department of Contemporary Antiquities.

Stone, armoured steel, combination lock.

Next version Stone. Steel safe, delivered empty.

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Catalogue entry

Record GLI.2026.011
Work 11 of 13

Materials depicted
Stone, armoured steel, combination lock.Contents: undeclared.
Provenance
Vault of a private bank, level minus three. Brought back up under his own steam.
Condition report
Stable. Effort constant. Yield: nil.
Related work
Titian, Sisyphus, 1548–49, Museo del Prado, Madrid.

Commentary

A cunning king of Corinth, Sisyphus outwitted the gods, and even Death himself. In Book XI of the Odyssey, Odysseus sees him in the Underworld heaving a huge boulder up a hill: just as he is about to tip it over the top, it rolls back down, and everything begins again.

In 1942, in The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus made him the absurd hero: ‘One must imagine Sisyphus happy.’ The boulder has appreciated in value since.

Previous version

Titian, Sisyphus, 1548–1549, Museo del Prado, Madrid. Here the rock is carried on his shoulders.

Reproduction: Museo Nacional del Prado, via Wikimedia CommonsPublic domainImage source

See both versions
References3 references

Digital composition by Aël, updated with the help of artificial intelligence. Glitch: original.