According to Livy, Lucretia was an exemplar of "beauty and purity," as well as Roman standards. Lucretia has emerged as heroine in the story. [2] Much like the rape of the Sabine women, Lucretia's story provides an explanation for historical change in Rome through a recounting of sexual assault against women. At the forum, the committee heard grievances against the Tarquins and began to enlist an army to abolish the monarchy. It is now in the Museum of Fine Arts, also called Kunsthistorisches Museum, which is an art museum located in Vienna. "Dürer's "Lucretia": Speaking the Silence of Women". Ovid recounts the story of Lucretia in Book II of his Fasti, published in 8 AD, concentrating on the bold over-reaching character of Tarquin. Vol. Dionysius of Halicarnassus sets this year "at the beginning of the sixty-eighth Olympiad ... Isagoras being the annual archon at Athens";[5] that is, 508/507 BC. Although contemporary sources to certify Lucretia as a historical person do not exist, later historians agreed that in fact there was such a woman. Lucretia was a devout wife, but during the absence of her husband Tarquinius Collatinus she was seduced and raped by the son of the Etruscan king, Sextus Tarquinius. You respect and strengthen the … 1520-25. Livy's account in Ab Urbe Condita Libri (c. 25–8 BC) is the earliest surviving full historical treatment. He was a candidate for the throne if anything should happen to Superbus. [4], Her face bears elements of idealisation, although for the most part she is presented as a real woman. Lucretia and Virginia, both renown'd Committing suicide is the ultimate disappearing act. Secondary sources on the establishment of the republic reiterate the basic events of Lucretia's story, though accounts vary slightly between historians. Her father's blood splashed on t… Lydgate's work is a long poem containing stories and myths about various kings and princes who fell from power. In: This page was last edited on 9 October 2020, at 09:55. I: The Republic", "Reinventing Lucretia: Rape, Suicide and Redemption from Classical Antiquity to the Medieval Era", "Full Text of "Fall of Princes, edited by Henrey Bergen, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lucretia&oldid=1015513223, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Pages using Sister project links with default search, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 1 April 2021, at 22:16. [11] Those selected were Publius Valerius Publicola from Rome and Lucius Junius Brutus from the camp at Ardea. She died in her father's arms, while the women present lamented her death. Livy contrasts the virtue of the Roman Lucretia, who remained in her room weaving, with the Etruscan ladies who feasted with friends. In Livy's version, Lucretia acts quickly and calmly, deciding not to go to Rome, but instead sends for her father and her husband, asking them to bring one friend each to act as a witness. Her tragedy began when she was raped by Sextus Tarquinius, son of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the tyrannical Etruscan king of Rome. C'est à la suite de cet événement tragique que Rome serait passée de la monarchie à la République, en 509 av. Shakespeare's poem, based on the rape of Lucretia, draws on the beginning of the Livy's account of the incident. Gower's work is a collection of narrative poems. My thesis is a comparative discussion of two intriguing and radically dissimilar paintings of Lucretia: Tarquin and Lucretia by Tintoretto and Lucretia by Artemisia Gentileschi. Lucretia. Upon their arrival, she was weaving with her maids. The Suicide of Lucretia is an oil on lime panel painting by Albrecht Dürer, signed and dated 1518, in the collection of the Alte Pinakothek, Munich. In either situation, her clothing is loosened or absent, while Tarquin is normally clothed. "[11], Carluccio, Luigi. The Suicide of Lucretia, Marcantonio Raimondi, after Rafaël, 1509 - 1514 engraving, h 212mm × w 130mm More details. [23], Lucretia's rape and suicide is also the subject of William Shakespeare's 1594 long poem The Rape of Lucrece, which draws extensively on Ovid's treatment of the story;[24] he also mentions her in Titus Andronicus, in As You Like It, and in Twelfth Night, wherein Malvolio authenticates his fateful letter by spotting Olivia's Lucrece seal. He began by revealing that his pose as a fool was a sham designed to protect him against an evil king. Christine de Pizan used Lucretia just as St. Augustine of Hippo did in her City of Ladies, defending a woman's sanctity. Although there is not enough evidence to support the thesis that suicide … For chastity.[26]. According to Dionysius, "This dreadful scene struck the Romans who were present with so much horror and compassion that they all cried out with one voice that they would rather die a thousand deaths in defense of their liberty than suffer such outrages to be committed by the tyrants."[10]. Brutus happened to be a politically motivated participant. She is also mentioned in the poem "Appius and Virginia" by John Webster and Thomas Heywood, which includes the following lines: Two fair, but ladies most infortunate, In Samuel Richardson's 1740 novel Pamela, Mr. B. cites the story of Lucretia as a reason why Pamela ought not fear for her reputation, should he rape her. 3 Afterwards, although she was the victim, Lucretia committed suicide. A direct excerpt from Livy is used when Shakespeare prefaces his poem with a brief prose called "Argument". Rembrandt tells the story of Lucretia through her solemn and saddened gaze, in the traces of blood on her gown, and the dagger in her hand. Art historians tend not to view it as one of his best paintings, and it is often compared, unfavourably, to a similar work by Lucas Cranach the Elder. As a result, the prominent families instituted a republic, drove the extensive royal family of Tarquin from Rome, and successfully defended the republic against attempted Etruscan and Latin intervention.[1]. Chr. In subsequent years, the powers of the king were divided among various elected magistracies. It is a principal highlight of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, one of the best art museums in America. Similar to Livy, Dionysius' depiction of Lucretia separates her from the rest of Roman women in a story about the men returning home from a battle. In Book VII, he tells the "Tale of the Rape of Lucrece." Lucretia was the daughter of magistrate Spurius Lucretius and the wife of Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus. The husband of Lucretia was Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, one of the leaders of the revolution that … The legendary rape of Roman noblewoman Lucretia by Tarquin, king of Rome, and her subsequent suicide are credited as inspiring the revolt against the Tarquin family by Lucius Junius Brutus which led to the founding of the Roman Republic. After disclosing the rape, she asked them for vengeance, a plea that could not be ignored because she was speaking to the chief magistrate of Rome. Superbus had taken his inheritance and left him a pittance, keeping him at court for entertainment.[15]. The constitutional consequences of this event ended the reign of the hereditary king; however, later emperors were absolute rulers in all but name.This constitutional tradition prevented both Julius Caesar and Octavian Augustus from accepting a crown; instead, they had to devise a confluence of several republican offices onto their persons in order to secure absolute power. Abrams, 1967. Once there, they heard a constitutional speech by Brutus. Perhaps suicide redeems Lucretia’s dishonor because shame makes us want to disappear. Lucretia's rape and suicide is also the subject of William Shakespeare's 1594 long poem The Rape of Lucrece, which draws extensively on Ovid's treatment of the story;[13] he also mentioned her in Titus Andronicus, in As You Like It, and in Twelfth Night in which Malvolio authenticates his fateful letter by spotting Olivia's Lucrece seal, and alludes to her in Macbeth. Unwilling to endure the prospect of gossip and a public scandal, Lucretia stabbed herself in the heart and died. In Donna Leon's 2009 Venetian novel, About Face, Franca Marinello refers to the tale of Tarquin and Lucrezia, as recounted in Ovid's Fasti (Book II, for February 24, "Regifugium") to explain her actions to Commissario Brunetti. These were often depicted by the same artists, and especially popular in Northern Renaissance art. The Tragedy of Lucretia is a tempera and oil painting on a wood cassone or spalliera panel by the Italian Renaissance master Sandro Botticelli, painted between 1496 and 1504.Known less formally as the Botticelli Lucretia, it is housed in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum of Boston, Massachusetts, having been owned by Isabella Stewart Gardner in her lifetime. It is said that upon returning from the senate house where her husband was finally declared king, towards the Urbian Hill, she saw her father's body lying on the street. Their successors both in Rome and in Constantinople adhered to this tradition in essence, and the office of German Holy Roman Emperor remained elective rather than hereditary—up to its abolition in the Napoleonic Wars, over 2300 years later. Spurius Lucretius, father of Collatinus' wife Lucretia and prefect of Rome,[7] made sure that the king's son was treated as a guest and a figure of his rank. Lucretia revealed the crime to her husband and father, and, in their presence, took her own life. Later in the night, Tarquin entered Lucretia's bedroom, quietly going around the slaves who were sleeping at her door. The gates of Rome were blockaded by the new revolutionary soldiers and more were sent to guard Collatia. 57-60", "Roman Civilization: Selected Readings. He passed the dagger around and each mourner swore the same oath by it. Thomas Heywood's play The Rape of Lucretia dates from 1607. All reproductions are hand painted by talented artists. Lucretia stands in front of a cramped and harshly lit room containing the bridal bed on which she was raped. [14], In this version, Collatinus and Brutus were encountered returning to Rome unaware of the incident, were briefed, and were brought to the death scene. Because of her devotion to her husband, Roman writers Livy and Dionysus outline Lucretia as the role model for Roman girls. Feb 10, 2021 natashamoura. Later, St. Augustine made use of the figure of Lucretia in The City of God (published 426 AD) to defend the honour of Christian women who had been raped in the sack of Rome and had not committed suicide. Needing to acquire the assent of the population as a whole, they paraded Lucretia through the streets, summoning the plebeians to a legal assembly in the forum. In order to do so, he proposed riding to his home to observe Lucretia. Suicide of Lucretia by Titian is an oil painting dating to about 1515. (“Not in time to come shall ever unchaste woman live through the example of Lucretia”) Then, as the men looked at each other in despair and confusion, Lucretia took up a dagger and plunged it into her heart. [2] Her face betraying feelings of disgrace, as she stabs herself with a sword to the belly. Her husband was Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, he was one of the leaders of the revolution that came up as a result of his wife’s death. The legend of Lucretia’s suicide is referred to in the work of the Roman historian Titus Livius, among others. [28], The subject of Lucretia spinning with her ladies, is sometimes depicted, as in a series of four engravings of her story by Hendrick Goltzius, which also includes a banquet. [1] Lucretia stands in front of a cramped and harshly lit room containing the bridal bed on which she was raped. Tarquin tried to convince Lucretia that she should be with him, using "every argument likely to influence a female heart. In Dionysius of Halicarnassus' account, the following day Lucretia dressed in black and went to her father's house in Rome and cast herself down in the supplicant's position (embracing the knees), weeping in front of her father and husband. Brutus "urged them to act as men and Romans and take up arms against their insolent foes"[17] in response to the death of a dutiful wife. Suicide of Lucretia The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust) Truth presenting a Mirror to the Vanities of the World The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology. By this blood—most pure before the outrage wrought by the king's son—I swear, and you, O gods, I call to witness that I will drive hence Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, together with his cursed wife and his whole blood, with fire and sword and every means in my power, and I will not suffer them or anyone else to reign in Rome. 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