Description

"It was one of the few moments in her brief and troubled life that it was sweet to treasure." Weaving a rose garland as a present for her beloved master Glaucus, the blind servant Nydia resists speaking of her love for him. The scene is based on Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton's enormously popular historical novel The Last Days of Pompeii (published in 1835), a melodramatic epic set in ancient Roman times, which culminates with the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Responding to the 19th-century appetite for things antique, the artist filled his historical scenes with depictions of Roman frescoes and statuary. Dutch by birth, Alma-Tadema made this picture in Brussels for a London art dealer. But the demand for such paintings became so great that he moved to England, where he achieved great financial and social success.

Provenance

Ernest Gambart, London, United Kingdom, by commission of the artist (1867); Ernest Gambart [1814-1902], London, United Kingdom, after 1870 sold to José de Murrieta, alias Marquis de Santurce. (1867-1870); (Christie's, London, United Kingdom, April 7, 1883, lot 164, Marquis de Santurce sale, bought in) (1883); (Christie's, London, United Kingdom, March 30, 1895, lot 143, sold to Stephen Gooden & Fox) (1895); ( Stephen Gooden & Fox, London. United Kingdom, sold to Thomas Agnew & Sons) (1895); (Thomas Agnew & Son, London, United Kingdom, January 15, 1917 sold to A.G. O'Neil) (1917); (Sotheby's Belgravia, Funt Collection Sale, November 6, 1973, lot 8, sold to Jules Brassner, New York. (1973); Jules Brasser [1916-1999], New York, NY, sold to Mr. Noah Butkin; Mr. Noah Butkin [1918-1980],Cleveland, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art (1977); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1977-)