Image source: metmuseum.org
The Abduction of the Sabine Women
Artist:Nicolas Poussin
| Support Type: | Canvas |
| Paint Type: | Oil Paint |
| Current Location: | The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. |
| Location History: | Poussin painted this version in Rome around 1633–1634, during the period when he was living and working there. The painting was associated with Marshal Charles I de Créquy, the French ambassador to Rome, who appears to have acquired it around 1633–1634. Créquy died in 1638, after which the painting entered the collection of Cardinal Armand-Jean du Plessis, Cardinal Richelieu, in Paris. Following Richelieu’s death in 1642, the painting remained in his estate until 1650, when it was sold and passed to the Duchesse d’Aiguillon. It subsequently passed through several European collections, including those of Jean Neret de La Ravoye, Benigne de Ragois de Bretonvilliers, Jaques Meijers, and the Hoare family at Stourhead. In 1883, it was sold from the Hoare collection and eventually entered the collection of Sir Francis Cook and his descendants. In 1946, it was acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art through the Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, where it remains today. |
Poussin depicts the abduction of the Sabine women as a carefully ordered yet violent scene marking Rome’s legendary beginnings. Romulus commands from above while soldiers seize the women amid horses, weapons and movement. Despite the chaos, Poussin controls every gesture and form, creating a striking tension between violence, order, and human suffering.
Information Compiled by
Zia Rukshan Zerin