Artemisia drinking the Ashes of Mausolus
- Artist: Donato Creti
- Date: about 1713-14
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Museum: The National Gallery
- Collection record: The National Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is "Artemisia drinking the Ashes of Mausolus" painted by Donato Creti. The painting depicts Artemisia, queen of Halicarnassus, with a cup containing the ashes of her dead husband Mausolus, which she was said to have drunk in order to become his living tomb.
Artemisia gazes solemnly upward, her face pale and her mouth slightly open. Our eye is drawn along the serving girl's crisp yellow drapery towards the tray in her outstretched hand, continuing into Artemisia's bowl and culminating in her sorrowful face.
Creti was known for elegant compositions like this one, and his precise handling of form is evident here, particularly in the servant's profile and intricate hairstyle. He painted this scene around 1713-14, having established his career in Bologna, and it's likely based on a similar composition by Giovan Gioseffo dal Sole from Rome.
The use of oil on canvas gives the painting a rich and detailed quality, with delicate brushstrokes that add to its sense of intimacy.
See it in person
Artemisia drinking the Ashes of Mausolus hangs in The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
