Artistic Representations
During the Renaissance the subject was popular as a story symbolising the central importance of marriage for the continuity of families and cultures. It was also a rare example of a battle subject, a highly popular genre, which allowed the artist to demonstrate his virtuosity in the depiction of female as well as male figures in extreme poses, with the added advantages of a titillating sexual theme. As such it was depicted regularly on 15th-century Italian cassoni, and later in larger paintings. A comparable opportunity drawn from the New Testament was afforded by the theme of the Massacre of the Innocents.
Important treatments of the subject include:
Read more about this topic: The Rape Of The Sabine Women
Famous quotes containing the word artistic:
“In European thought in general, as contrasted with American, vigor, life and originality have a kind of easy, professional utterance. American—on the other hand, is expressed in an eager amateurish way. A European gives a sense of scope, of survey, of consideration. An American is strained, sensational. One is artistic gold; the other is bullion.”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)