The Abduction of the Sabine Women by Poussin in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, February 2019

The Abduction of the Sabine Women,probably 1633–34


Object Details

Artist: Nicolas Poussin (French, Les Andelys 1594–1665 Rome)

Date: probably 1633–34

Medium: Oil on canvas

Dimensions: 60 7/8 x 82 5/8 in. (154.6 x 209.9 cm)

Classification: Paintings

Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1946

Accession Number: 46.160


According to Roman mythology, the neighboring Sabines were invited to a festival with the intention of forcibly retaining their young women as wives. When the Roman leader Romulus raised his cloak, his warriors seized the women. This dramatic story gave Poussin the opportunity to display his command of gesture and pose and his knowledge of ancient sculpture and architecture. The man at the right wears a yellow lorica made of leather. The painting belonged to the maréchal de Créquy, who was the French ambassador to Rome from June 1633 to July 1634, and then to Cardinal Richelieu.


Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/437329