Death of Cleopatra,

um 1624/25

Material / Technology / Carrier

Leinwand

Dimensions of the object

97,5 x 85,5 cm

Displayed

AP OG Saal X

Department

German Painting

Genre

Painting

Inventory number

13434

Acquisition

1964 aus Schweizer Privatbesitz erworben

Stock

Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen – Alte Pinakothek München

Citation

Johann Liss, Tod der Kleopatra, um 1624/25, Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen – Alte Pinakothek München, URL: https://www.sammlung.pinakothek.de/en/artwork/gR4kZrrGEe (Last updated on 24.10.2023)

Liss, a native of Holstein, was increasingly influenced by Dutch and Flemish painters from 1615, during periods spent in Amsterdam, Haarlem and Antwerp, before going to Italy via Paris in 1620, where he was particularly active in Venice and Rome. Inspired by the style of Caravaggio and Annibale Carracci, Liss captures the suicide of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra here. Following the death of her lover, Mark Antony, she took her own life by means of a bite from an asp hidden in a basket of fruit. According to belief in Ancient Egypt its bite imparted immortality.