Lot 24

Anonymous North Italian painter LUCRETIA

The disgraced Lucretia is one of the classical and very important artistic themes depicted by many famous painters. Among them are: Lucas Cranach, Rembrandt Harmensz Van Rijn, Artemisia Gentileschi, Titian, Botticelli and Raffael Santi. The impressive subject of Lucretia's suicide refers to the deeds of Sextus Tarquinius, who fell for a beauty of Lucretia and longed to deprive her of her proven virtues. He gave Lucretia a choice - either kill her and one of his slaves and make sure they found her like that and accused her of adultery, or that she would be willing to sleep with him. Lucretia complied, but she could not bear the weight of her grief and guilt and committed suicide. The impressive Baroque theme of Lucretia in agony represents a successful interpretation of the event by a northern Italian painter of the 17th century. The painter wrapped Lucretia in blue and crimson, colors referring to the virtue of the holy family, and added two pearl bracelets and beautiful pearl earrings as a symbol of purity and virtue. Lucretia thus retains his nobility even at the moment of death.