The Virtue of Lucretia
Artist: Giuseppe Cades (Italian, 1750-1799)
Date: about 1774-1782
Dimensions:
H: 39 in. (99 cm); W: 53 1/8 in. (135 cm)
Medium: Oil on canvas
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 2000.29
Label Text:The subject of this canvas derives from the Roman legend of Lucretia (center), the virtuous heroine from antiquity celebrated for her fidelity and marital chastity. Giuseppe Cades represents a moment in the story when Lucretia’s husband, the Roman consul Collatinus (shown clasping her hand), surprises his wife while she and her maidservants knit cloaks for the soldiers on the battlefield. The surprise encounter sparks an ill-fated lust in the heart of Sextus Tarquinius, son of the Etruscan king of Rome and Collatinus’s one-time ally. Cades depicts him leering at Lucretia’s captivating beauty.
According to the story, Lucretia was subsequently raped by Sextus Tarquinius. Preferring death to dishonor, Lucretia committed suicide after relating the traumatic event to her husband and father. Her kinsmen avenged Lucretia by overthrowing the Etruscan rulers and subsequently established the Roman Republic.
According to the story, Lucretia was subsequently raped by Sextus Tarquinius. Preferring death to dishonor, Lucretia committed suicide after relating the traumatic event to her husband and father. Her kinsmen avenged Lucretia by overthrowing the Etruscan rulers and subsequently established the Roman Republic.
Not on view
In Collection(s)