Alexander the Great Rescued from the River Cydnus, Pietro Testa (c. 1650)
As recorded by his earliest biographer, Pietro Testa often studied the effects of nocturnal light and atmosphere along Rome’s Tiber River, observing how reflections played across the water’s surface. These meditative explorations inspired moody, evocative landscapes that anticipate the Romanticism of the 19th century. Testa’s untimely death—believed to be a suicide by drowning in 1650—adds a haunting resonance to this painting. Alexander the Great in the River Cydnus, thought to be among his final works, captures the moment of the conqueror’s sudden illness while bathing, subtly mirroring the artist’s own fate.
Cotton and polyester canvas on Radiata pine wood frame sourced from renewable forests. Includes back mounting.
