Alexander the Great seated on throne gives audience to satraps of the empire

Oil on canvas

90 x 142 cm.

In frame 114 x 168 cm.

The composition depicts Alexander the Great, seated triumphant on his throne and aware of his own glory as he raises his sceptre high in the air as a sign of power, while giving an audience to the Persian governors of the conquered provinces, dressed in traditional ceremonial robes.

With the conquest of the Persian empire and the consequent subjugation of Darius III, Alexander had now marked his rise to ruler of the ancient world, and it became necessary to establish a court administration in which his state could be manifested and by which he could bring the authority of his sovereignty to his empire.

We see here Alexander, by now considered the King of Kings, receiving the Persian satraps of the provinces of the kingdom (the satrapies) in audience in his royal tent, displaying all the typical symbols of his power: the throne, the classical crown (tiara), the shirt, the red royal cloak (chiton) and of course the sceptre.

During these audiences, Alexander had his former rulers swear allegiance to him, in return he gave them the power of administrative management, while he naturally entrusted military management to his loyalists.

This is a fine work, executed by a French painter active around the second half of the 17th century, specifically from the circle/workshop of Charles Le Brune, a painter who tackled this theme on several occasions, including the famous four canvases commissioned by King Louis XIV, which were intended to illustrate the warrior exploits of the greatest conqueror of antiquity, a military genius capable of creating an empire spanning three continents.

The ambitions of the great monarch found in the figure of Alexander a comparison and a model for their extension: Le Brun's compositions are therefore not just a reminder of some famous episodes from Antiquity, but participate fully in the propaganda glorifying the monarchy and the reigning sovereign.

Many aristocrats of the time, in the wake of the deigning, commissioned works featuring the Great Alexander for their collections, and often, as in this case most probably, had their own likenesses portrayed.

Good state of preservation. Rintelato. Pictorial matter in very good condition, with scattered old restorations on the surface.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The painting is sold complete with a nice frame and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and descriptive iconographic card.

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