Curtius Leaping into the Gulf
| Curtius Leaping into the Gulf | |
|---|---|
| Artist | Benjamin Robert Haydon |
| Year | 1842 |
| Type | Oil on canvas, history painting |
| Dimensions | 304.8 cm × 213.3 cm (120.0 in × 84.0 in) |
| Location | Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter |
Curtius Leaping into the Gulf is an 1842 history painting by the British artist Benjamin Robert Haydon.[1] It depicts a scene from the early Roman Republic recorded by Livy. Marcus Curtius bravely leaps into a giant hole that had opened up in the Roman Forum in an act of self-sacrifice in order to save the city.[2] The face of Curtius is a self-portrait of Haydon, while he used the Elgin Marbles as an inspiration for the horse.[3] It was displayed at the 1843 Royal Institution exhibition in London.[4] It was generally praised and was described by the Morning Chronicle as "the finest work of art in the exhibition".[5] The painting is in the collection of the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter, having been acquired in 1933.[6]
References
Bibliography
- Carlisle, Janice. Picturing Reform in Victorian Britain. Cambridge University Press, 2012.
- Connell, Philip & Leask, Nigel (ed.) Romanticism and Popular Culture in Britain and Ireland. Cambridge University Press, 2009.
- O'Keeffe, Paul. A Genius for Failure: The life of Benjamin Robert Haydon. Random House, 2011.
- Wright, Christopher, Gordon, Catherine May & Smith, Mary Peskett. British and Irish Paintings in Public Collections: An Index of British and Irish Oil Paintings by Artists Born Before 1870 in Public and Institutional Collections in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Yale University Press, 2006.