Peter Paul Rubens
1630–35
Oil paint on wood
108.5 x 106.8 cm
Although it appears finished, this painting is in fact a design for one of eight tapestries depicting the ancient Greek warrior Achilles. Peter Paul Rubens made small sketches before producing this work, which in turn served as the basis for a much larger, full-scale version.
The episode is taken from Homer’s Iliad: the goddess Minerva grabs Achilles’s hair to stop him from drawing his sword and attacking his ruler, Agamemnon. Achilles is furious that the king has taken possession of Briseis, a young woman Achilles had enslaved.