Object Image

The Death of Eurydice

The story of Eurydice and Aristaeus is told by the Roman poet Virgil. In the far distance Orpheus, Eurydice's husband, charms wild animals with his music. Three nymphs gather flowers, unaware that the shepherd Aristaeus is pursuing Eurydice. She is bitten by a snake as she runs away. Identifiable by her blue drapery, Eurydice appears again, lying dead on the ground. In the middle distance, Aristaeus consults his mother Cyrene concerning the death of his bees. The sea-god Proteus, lying with his overflowing urn on the ground, explained to Aristaeus that the disaster in the hives was a punishment for his pursuit of Eurydice.

This picture was probably painted in France where Niccolò dell'Abate wo...

c. 1552-71
Oil on canvas
189.2 x 237.5cm
NG5283
Image and text © The National Gallery, London, 2024

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