Timoclea Kills the Captain of Alexander the Great, 1659 by Elisabetta Sirani 📍 Museo di Capodimonte, Naples, Italy Timoclea’s story is one of the most extraordinary acts of revenge recorded in the ancient world. According to Plutarch, after Alexander the Great’s army captured Thebes in 335 BCE, a Thracian captain broke into Timoclea’s home and raped her. He then demanded to know where she had hidden her money and valuables. Timoclea told him she had thrown them into a well and calmly led him to it. When the captain leaned over the opening to look, she pushed him in. She then threw stones down on top of him until he was dead. The artist Elisabetta Sirani chooses the exact moment the balance of power changes. The captain is already tumbling headfirst into the well as Timoclea stands above him. She is composed and purposeful, watching him fall. There is no panic in the scene and Sirani makes no attempt to portray her as helpless. Her clothing remains carefully arranged, her posture is controlled, and she is firmly in command. The classical details surrounding her place the story firmly in the ancient world. An amphora sits beside the well, while the carved stone relief behind her introduces another scene of violence from classical mythology. Timoclea was later brought before Alexander to answer for killing his captain. When asked who she was, she identified herself as the sister of Theagenes, a Theban commander who had fought against Alexander’s father, Philip II. Plutarch writes that Alexander was so impressed by her courage that he ordered Timoclea and her children to be released. Sirani painted the story more than two thousand years later, but instead of concentrating on what had been done to Timoclea, she chose the moment Timoclea took control. The man who had entered her home believing he held all the power is now falling beneath her. h/t @painting_explained #fyp #foryou #art #artist #streetartglobe
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