Combat of the Lapiths and Centaurs
1542
Medium
Engraving in black on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
29.2 × 41.6 cm (11 1/2 × 16 7/16 in.)
Classification
engraving
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
80259
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Theseus was a great Athenian mythological hero. In one chivalric tale about his life, he was a guest at the wedding of Pirithous, king of the Lapiths. The centaurs, relatives of the bride, also came to the feast; they became intoxicated and seized the women in attendance. Here Theseus draws his sword in an attempt to rescue the captive bride and drive the centaurs away, a feat he ultimately accomplished.
About the Artist
Enea Vico · 1523–1567
Enea Vico (1523–1567) was born in Parma and came of age during the final, energetic decades of Italian Renaissance printmaking. By 1541 he had made his way to Rome, where he entered the orbit of the engraver and publisher Tommaso Barlacchi and began his professional career. In Rome, Vico encountered the work of the most celebrated printmakers of the preceding generation—Marcantonio Raimondi, Agost...