Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks

Ilya Repin

1880–1891 · Oil on canvas · State Russian Museum, St Petersburg

Size2:3 ratio

Frame

$59Unframed print · made to order

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Complete the setHangs well with these two

This print

Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks

Barge Haulers on the Volga

A Burial at Ornans

3 × $59 at 16 × 24 in, unframed = $177 → $159.30 as a set · 10% included · free shipping

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Giclée-printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper

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Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free

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About this work

Artist: Ilya Repin (1844–1930)
Year: 1880–1891
Medium: Oil on canvas
Original size: 203 × 358 cm
Collection: State Russian Museum, St Petersburg
Movement: Realism

A crowd of Zaporozhian Cossacks roars with laughter as a scribe takes down their reply to the Ottoman sultan Mehmed IV, who had demanded their submission; the legendary letter of 1676 answered his titles with a string of obscene insults. Repin began the picture in 1880 after hearing the text read aloud, travelled to Ukraine to draw Cossack descendants, weapons and clothing, and worked on it for eleven years; the ataman Ivan Sirko, in the fur hat with the pipe, was modelled on a general, and the bald laughing man is the historian Dmytro Yavornytsky, who advised him. Shown in 1891, it was bought by Alexander III for 35,000 roubles, then the highest price paid for a Russian painting. It belongs to the State Russian Museum in St Petersburg; Repin painted a second version, now in Kharkiv.

This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole work beneath original typography set in-house. The original is in the public domain.

Where it works

A roaring crowd of moustached Cossacks in red, blue and fur around a scribe's table, for a study, dining room or games room at 24×36 in black. Deep red, olive or dark grey walls suit the riot of colour; pair it with Barge Haulers on the Volga.

Style, size & framing detail

Style: Exhibition poster of a Realism painting
Era: 19th century (1880–1891)
Orientation: Portrait
Palette: cream & beige
Mood: grand
Rooms: dining room, study or library, living room, dorm room, hallway or entryway
Good gift for: housewarming, art lovers

Size. We'd hang this one at 24×36. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.

Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.

Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).

Details & materials

• Exhibition poster — original, drawn in-house • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in; every size also available framed • Framed option: wood frame in black or natural wood, 12 mm wide and 22 mm deep, with a plexiglass front and no mat; the print is mounted inside and the frame's outside measures the listed size • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Printed after you order at the facility nearest you, then shipped. Standard delivery is free and takes 4–9 business days from order to door in the US, UK and EU (up to 10 elsewhere); Express takes 4–6 business days. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole painting, or a crop?

The whole work, uncropped. The exhibition-poster edition sets the complete image above typography designed in-house.

Is Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks in the public domain?

Yes. Ilya Repin (1844–1930) died more than 70 years ago and the work was published before 1929, so the painting itself is public domain. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of the original, which is held by State Russian Museum.

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 12×18, 16×24 and 24×36 inches; every size is also offered framed in black or natural wood, with plexiglass and no mat. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks painted, and in what medium?

Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks dates from 1880–1891 and was made in oil on canvas; the original measures 203 × 358 cm.

What size works above a sofa or bed?

Across a three-seat sofa or a queen bed, 24×36 is the size that reads as one statement piece; 16×24 suits a narrower wall or a pair. For Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks we'd choose 24×36.

About this design

A museum-exhibition poster of Ilya Repin's Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks — a crowd of laughing Cossacks dictating an insulting letter to a scribe — shown whole and uncropped beneath gallery typography. Repin and Russian Realism, styled as a blockbuster exhibition print. A gallery-style exhibition poster: a celebrated public-domain artwork shown whole and uncropped beneath original exhibition typography set in-house — printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Every size is offered unframed or framed in black or natural wood. Part of the Madten Exhibition Posters Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

Buy with confidence

The Madten promise

Gallery-grade archival giclée. Rich pigment inks on heavyweight fine-art paper (or gallery-wrapped canvas) — built to last, not a poster-shop print.

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in 4–9 business days.

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