May 24
Virgil Reading the Aeneid to Augustus and Octavia
Artist: Jean-Joseph Taillasson (French, 1745-1809)
Date: 1787
Medium: Oil on canvas
Collection: The National Gallery, London, United Kingdom
Description
The subject of this picture is from the Life of Virgil by Tiberius Claudius Donatus (active about AD 400). The poet Virgil is reading the closing lines of Book VI of his epic poem the Aeneid to the Emperor Augustus and his sister Octavia. Augustus, in profile and crowned with laurel, leans forward in his throne which bears the Roman eagle.
#literary painting#historical narrative#figures#the poet virgil#the life of virgil#tiberius claudious#interior scene#columns#arches#architectute#the aeneid#emperor augustus#octavia#scroll#shadow#fainted figure#table#chairs#men#women#costume#knight#cloak#olive wreath#draped fabric#architecture#painting#oil on canvas#fine art#oil painting
