FRENCH SCHOOL. cccooooooo LE BRUN. cocooooooo FRENCH MUSEUM. THE FAMILY OF DARIUS IN PRESENCE OF ALEXANDER. After the battle of Issus, there only remained to Alexander to pursue Darius into the passes of Cilicia, and to gather his treasures and the baggage of the dispersed army. Fate so willed it, that the mother, the wife, and the children of the unfortunate and fugitive monarch, should also fall into the conqueror's hands. According to Quintus Curtius, « Alexander caused the female prisoners to be informed that he was coming in person to visit them; and, leaving his escort behind him, he entered their tent, accompanied by Ephæstion, who was of his own age, 'but much taller: thus, the two princesses, mistaking the latter for the king, greeted him according to the manner of the Persians. Sysigambis, discovering her mistake, threw herself at Alexander's feet, begging of him to excuse her error, as she had never before seen him. Then the king stretched out his hand to raise her, saying: « Mother, you are not mistaken; he also, is another Alexander. » Such is the scene represented by Le Brun, who executed this picture in the presence of Lewis XIV, who used to come almost every day to see his favorite painter at work. Among the masterpieces of the French School, the Family of Darius will always be mentioned as one of the most perfect, for the grandeur of the composition, as also for the correctness and fidelity of the expressions. This picture has been engraved by Gerard Edelinck. Width, 22 feet 9 inches; height, 17 feet. |