The famous leader Alexander the Great lies on a bed and drinks a medicine that was prepared for him by Philip, his doctor, accused of treason against Alexander, through a letter, which he reads aloud at that moment. Hands raised in horror, eyes wide open, their comrades wait to discover the truth. Alexander looks at Philip to acknowledge his innocence and loyalty, which will later be demonstrated by his improved health. This scene, inspired by Plutarch’s Life of Alexander, has been – unlike others – rarely portrayed, probably due to the difficulty of making the moment in which such conflicting feelings are exalted at the same time. The French painter Eustache Le Sueur relied on several visual sources for his composition, including paintings by the most celebrated French painter working during the same period, Nicolas Poussin: Death of Germanicus – Minneapolis Institute of Art – and Extreme Unction – Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge – taken from the artist’s first set of Seven Sacraments. Both paintings include a suffering military figure, reclining on a bed in the centre, surrounded by anguished woman and soldiers. Giovanni Lanfranco’s oval painting of 1616 includes a bed positioned at the same angle and with a canopy. Another likely source was Raphael’s compositions for the Vatican Loggie of Isaac blessing Jacob and Isaac and Esau, which found wide success as engravings by Lanfranco and Sisto Badalocchio. In 1648, the same year he produced this work, Le Sueur had become a founder member of the Académie Royale. This resulted in him securing prestigious commissions, of which this painting is a leading example. The work was commissioned by Jérôme de Nouveau, a French government minister, for his Paris residence. Oil on canvas, The National Gallery, London.
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