Cleopatra c1695
Cleopatra c1695 by Italian Painter Carlo Maratta (1625 – 1713), known for his classical style painting of the Late Baroque Classical Manner Period.
This is a beautiful portrait that represents the historical event when Cleopatra (69 B.C. – 30 B.C.) makes the faithful decision to take her own life by snake bite, according to popular belief using an Egyptian Cobra (a symbol of divine royalty) on August 12, 30 B.C., which avoided her the humiliation of being paraded as a prisoner in a Roman Triumph that celebrates the military victories of Octavian, who would become Rome’s first Emperor in 27 B.C. and who’s name was changed to Augustus.
Her death and that of her son Caesarion also known as Ptolemy XV brought and end to the Hellenistic period and Ptolemaic rule of Egypt, and was the beginning of the Roman Egypt, which became a province of the Roman Empire.
In this painting she is sitting in front of a very large velvet drape, and she is wearing a large off shoulder deep v-neck fluffy white blouse and a red strapped leather vest; around her and tucked on her left arm is a blue shawl and on her lap is a decorative golden brown floral pattern cloth; and she also as a light blue ribbon tied to the back of her hair.
Across her chest is a rope body jewelry, composed of white pearls and gold; while in her right hand she holds a light blue bowl with brown curved handles, and in her left a bell shaped silver piece that is attached to a red bow ribbon, that she appears ready to dip into the bowl that may contain the snake.
The Above Historical Information Is Derived From Wikipedia.org
This is a remastered digital art old masters reproduction of a public domain image that is available as an acrylic print, canvas print, metal print and wood print online.