Achilles among the Daughters of Lycomedes

Peter Paul Rubens (1577 - 1640)

Fitzwilliam Museum

1617 - 1618

During the Trojan Wars Achilles, dressed as a woman, lived among the daughters of Lycomedes, King of Skyros. Ulysses and Diomedes disguised themselves as merchants and went to the court of Lycomedes in search of Achilles. They recognized him when he picked up a sword rather than the jewels which they were displaying to the women. This is an exciting work for the fluid manner in which the paint is applied. It is probably a sketch for the larger version in the Prado. The artist treated the subject again in the early 1630s in a series of designs for tapestries of 'The Life of Achilles'.

• Medium: oil on panel
• Dimensions: 28 x 26 cm
• ArtFunded in: 1964
• Bequeathed by A J Hugh Smith through The Art Fund

Provenance

A.J.Hugh Smith

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