![Charles Gleyre - Lost Illusions or Le Soir [1865-67] by Gandalf's Gallery](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7347/9672471248_d612e55fa2.jpg)
Gleyre claimed that Lost Illusions represented a vision that he had experienced on the evening of March 1, 1835, while sitting on the banks of the Nile River near Abydos. An aging poet watches pensively as a mysterious boat carries away his youthful dreams and illusions, personified by music-making maidens and a cupid strewing flowers. Although the figures in the painting wear classical Greek dress, their vessel resembles a dahabieh, an Egyptian river boat.
[Louvre Museum, Paris - Oil on canvas, 157 x 238 cm]