Death of Cleopatra

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Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1653) was the first woman to join the Accademia di San Luca in Florence, in 1616. Her naturalistic approach to conventional themes gives them a more earthly dimension, in tune with the Baroque style of Caravaggio.

An adornment on Pharaonic headdresses and symbol of the eternity of the pharaohs’ power, the serpent also foreshadows her death and the end of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Beyond this, Gentileschi refuses any more obvious characterization of the Egyptian queen of Greek origin, famous for her intelligence and powers of persuasion. The subject of Cleopatra attracted many commissioners and was an opportunity for artists to paint a nude figure, a woman who surrenders to death in the search for redemption. Gentileschi, taking the opposite tack, recaptures the heroic dimension of the story, representing instead the moment when Cleopatra makes the decision about her destiny. Her political and amorous associations with Mark Antony threatened the power of the other Roman leaders, leading them to war. Defeated, Antony and Cleopatra took their own lives, and Rome assumed control over Egypt, thus bringing the Hellenistic period and Roman Republic to an end. The classical bas‐relief on the left‐hand side of the painting evokes this tragic sentiment by depicting a desolate figure putting a hand to her heart and flinging the other hand toward the sky, a typical gesture of mourners carved as tomb decorations. 

Text by Eliane Pinheiro

This masterpiece is owned by Collection Galerie G. Sarti, Paris, France but until November 17th in Museu de Arte de São Paolo, you can see it at the exhibition Women’s Histories which presents nearly a hundred works dating from the 1st to the 19th centuries.

P.S. Artemisia Gentileschi was an incredible woman and painter--get to know more about her here!