Artemisia

Description

Queen Artemisia II of ancient Caria (died 350 B.C.) was renowned throughout history as a devoted spouse. In Georg Pencz’s engraving, she drinks the ashes of her husband, Mausolus, which she has mixed with wine, in order to turn her body into his living tomb. Artemisia ruled in her husband’s stead for two years, during which time she built a magnificent building at Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey) to house their combined remains. Although the structure, which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, has been lost, the word mausoleum still reflects the grandeur of Artemisia’s
monument to Mausolus.

Artemisia

Georg Pencz

c. 1539

Accession Number

77504

Medium

Engraving in black on ivory laid paper

Dimensions

Image/plate/sheet: 19.7 × 13.7 cm (7 13/16 × 5 7/16 in.)

Classification

engraving

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer