Description
The Cardsharps, painted around 1596–1597, is one of the key works from the early Roman career of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. The scene depicts three figures gathered around a table during a card game. An elegantly dressed young man studies his cards, unaware that the other two players are conspiring to cheat him.
Caravaggio constructs a compact narrative through glances, gestures and signals. The man standing behind the victim looks over his shoulder at his cards and communicates the information to his accomplice with a raised hand. The young cheat in the foreground is preparing to draw a hidden card from behind his back. The viewer therefore understands the deception while its victim remains completely unaware of it. The scene also has a moral dimension.
