Lucretia
(Renaissance Europe )
This exquisite marble sculpture is one of a series of small reliefs attributed to Mosca showing heroes and heroines of antiquity. Represented here is the story of Lucretia, who, after having been raped by Sextus Tarquinius, stabs herself in front of a group, including her husband and father, to prove her innocence. Originally, the figure held a knife in the missing hand and was in the process of committing suicide, which explains the anguished expression on her face. The inlaid blue stone contrasts with the cool whiteness of the marble. The Latin inscription reads: "an example of chastity for married women."
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
In the Benoit-Oppenheim Collection, Berlin, until 1907. Lippmann Collection, London, until 1927; purchased by Jacques Seligmann and Company (through Frederik Muller & Cie Sale, lot no. IX) Paris, 1927; purchased by Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1928; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
2009 | An Antiquity of Imagination : Tullio Lombardo and Venetian High Renaissance Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington. |
2004 | Il Camerino di Alabastro di Alfonso I d'Este: Antonio Lombardo e la scultura all'antica. Castello Estense, Ferrara, Ferrara. |
1995 | Tiziano Vecellio: Amour Sacro e Profano. Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Rome. |
1978 | Antiquity in the Renaissance. Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton. |
Conservation
Date | Description | Narrative |
---|---|---|
6/28/1971 | Treatment | cleaned |
2/22/1978 | Treatment | cleaned |
Geographies
Italy, Venice (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 13 9/16 x W: 9 7/16 in. (34.5 x 24 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1928
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
27.252