Alexander the Great in His Conquest of Asia

Description The horseman in the foreground of this painting wears the type of extravagant helmet associated with the Macedonian ruler-general Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), conqueror of Europe and Asia from the Aegean Sea to India and Afghanistan, as well as Greece and Egypt. Prints and paintings of his exploits were popular and validated Europeans' sense of destiny in seeking dominion over other cultures. Most Europeans did not know what India or Afghanistan looked like, so any vaguely rugged setting was suitable.

Exhibitions

• World of Wonder. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1971-1972.

Provenance Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [date and mode of acquisition unknown] [1897 catalogue: no. 623, as Elsheimer]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Credit Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection, 1902