Agrippina and Her Children Mourning over the Ashes of Germanicus
Artist
Benjamin West
(American, 1738 – 1820)
Date1773
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions80 x 56 1/2 in. (203.2 x 143.5 cm)
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineBequest of John Ringling, 1936
Object numberSN403
West was American-born, but spent his career in London, and achieved great success for his large-scale history paintings. Meant to ennoble the viewer, such works typically conveyed a clear message about heroic or otherwise exemplary human emotion and behavior. Here Agrippina, wife of the Roman general Germanicus, mourns her husband’s death at the hands of his uncle, the Emperor Tiberius. The pathos of Agrippina and the older children is deepened by the carefree attitude of the smallest boys, who are blissfully unaware of the tragic loss.
On View
On viewLocation
- Museum of Art, Gallery 17, Wall East
