On view

European Art
Duane Wilder Gallery

Death of Adonis,

1639

Peter Paul Rubens, 1577–1640; born Siegen, Germany; died Antwerp, Belgium
formerly attributed to Peter Paul Rubens, 1577–1640; born Siegen, Germany; died Antwerp, Belgium
y1930-458
Late in his life, Rubens received two large and important commissions from King Philip IV of Spain. For the Torre de la Parada, the king’s hunting lodge outside Madrid, Rubens devised more than sixty mythological scenes, among them this oil sketch of the young Ganymede abducted by Jupiter in the guise of an eagle. For the Alcázar, Philip’s city palace, the king ordered a series of eighteen hunts; Rubens departed from the mythological account by the ancient Roman author Ovid in his Metamorphoses and instead portrayed the death of Adonis as a hunting accident. These quick and direct oil sketches demonstrate the assured touch and virtuoso economy of means by which Rubens conveyed his subjects.

Information

Title
Death of Adonis
Dates

1639

Medium
Oil on wood panel
Dimensions
34.6 x 52.4 cm (13 5/8 x 20 5/8 in.) frame: 45 x 73 x 6 cm (17 11/16 x 28 3/4 x 2 3/8 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, with funds given by the Carnegie Corporation
Object Number
y1930-458
Culture
Materials

John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset (1745–1799); by descent to his widow, Arabella Diana Sackville (née Cope, later Whitworth), Duchess of Dorset (1769–1825); by descent to her eldest daughter, Lady Mary Sackville (1792-1864); by descent to her younger sister, Elizabeth Sackville-West, Countess De La Warr (1795–1870); by descent to her 4th son, Mortimer Sackville-West, 1st Baron Sackville (1820-1888); by descent to his younger brother, Lionel Sackville-West, 2nd Baron Sackville (1827-1908); by descent to his nephew, Lionel Edward Sackville-West, 3rd Baron Sackville (1867-1928). With Spink & Son, London by 1930; 1930 purchase by Princeton University Art Museum.

formerly attributed to Peter Paul Rubens, 1577–1640; born Siegen, Germany; died Antwerp, Belgium