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Octavius Caesar (Later the Emperor Augustus), and Cleopatra

Image credit: National Trust Images

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As told in Plutarch's 'Life of Mark Antony' (AD 75), Octavianus Augustus Caesar, nephew and adoptive son of Julius Caesar, has come to show mercy to the Queen of Egypt after the defeat of her ally Mark Anthony at the Battle of Actium (31 BC) and his subsequent suicide.

Octavian is bidding the kneeling Cleopatra to rise. Behind her is a couch beside which two servant girls are standing. This is a pioneering work of neoclassicism, and includes archaeologically correct Egyptian motifs as well as a Doric portico.

The painting was commissioned by Henry Hoare II in 1759.

National Trust, Stourhead

Warminster

Title

Octavius Caesar (Later the Emperor Augustus), and Cleopatra

Date

1759–1760

Medium

oil on canvas

Measurements

H 299.5 x W 212 cm

Accession number

732099

Acquisition method

gift from Sir Henry Hugh Arthur Hoare along with the estate, house and its contents, 1946

Work type

Painting

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National Trust, Stourhead

Stourton, Warminster, Wiltshire BA12 6QD England

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