The Poisoning of Camma and Synorix at the Temple of Diana
Camma, Princess of Galatea, avenges the murder of her husband by poisoning his murderer. To do so, she accepts to marry him and pours the deadly beverage into the cup she must share with him during the union ceremony in the Temple of Diana.
This episode, extracted from Plutarch, illustrates the theme of the "strong women", testifying to their marital fidelity or their strength of character. After having been at the heart of the Parisian literary creation, these heroines were widely diffused in French painting and engraving of the 17th century, with the emergence of energetic regents and queens, real players and rebels in the religious wars.
Poerson still borrows from the art of Simon Vouet, of whom he was the collaborator, but the porcelain flesh, the taste for antiquity and the refined color reflect a more personal style.
This episode, extracted from Plutarch, illustrates the theme of the "strong women", testifying to their marital fidelity or their strength of character. After having been at the heart of the Parisian literary creation, these heroines were widely diffused in French painting and engraving of the 17th century, with the emergence of energetic regents and queens, real players and rebels in the religious wars.
Poerson still borrows from the art of Simon Vouet, of whom he was the collaborator, but the porcelain flesh, the taste for antiquity and the refined color reflect a more personal style.
The Poisoning of Camma and Synorix at the Temple of Diana
Second third of the 17th century
Oil on canvas
128x121 cm
André Weil Collection, before 1938
Purchase from the Society of Friends of the Museums of Metz with the support of David David-Weill, 1938
Gift of the Society of Friends of the Museums of Metz, 1939
