Kollwitz’ pastels of the Caveau des Innocents in Paris are among her most modern works. They show that she was familiar with the drawings of Edgar Degas and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and also with the paintings of Édouard Vuillard.
This pastel gives the most graphic description of the interior of the Caveau des Innocents. The gloomy cross-vault ceiling, the arched passageways and the cobbled floor are clearly discernible. A patron would have had to stoop to enter the tavern through the narrow entrance on the right.
