Full title | The Attack on Cartagena |
---|---|
Artist | Giulio Licinio |
Artist dates | about 1527; died after 1584 |
Series | Scenes from Ancient Roman History |
Date made | after 1566 |
Medium and support | Oil on canvas, transferred from wood |
Dimensions | 35.6 x 153 cm |
Acquisition credit | Bought, 1860 |
Inventory number | NG643.1 |
Location | Not on display |
Collection | Main Collection |
The Attack on Cartagena is one of a series of scenes from ancient Roman history that were probably intended to be inserted into wall panelling. Three further scenes from the series – The Continence of Scipio, The Rape of the Sabines and The Intervention of the Sabine Women – are also in the National Gallery.
The Romans assaulted the Carthaginian stronghold of New Carthage in 209 BC during the Second Punic War. The city, on the coast of north Africa, was on a peninsula connected to the mainlaind by a narrow strip of land. An unexpected storm drained the lagoon into the Mediterranean, allowing the Roman soldiers led by Scipio Africanus to approach the city from the north while the naval forces penetrated the city from the south, and the Carthaginians were forced to surrender. Here, the viewer is thrust into the centre of the action as Roman soldiers lay siege to the city.
The Attack on Cartagena is one of a series of paintings by Licinio of scenes from ancient Roman history. They were made to decorate a room and were originally painted on wooden panels but have since been transferred to canvas. Their size and horizontal format suggests they were probably intended to be inserted into wall panelling, as was common practice in Renaissance Venice.
Three other pictures in the series are in the National Gallery’s collection: The Continence of Scipio, The Rape of the Sabines and The Intervention of the Sabine Women. A further two pictures from the same series are in a private collection: Coriolanus and Scipio rewarding the Soldiers.
The Battle of Cartagena was a Roman assault on the Carthaginian stronghold of New Carthage on the coast of north Africa in 209 BC, during the Second Punic War. The city was very difficult to attack as it was situated on a peninsula which was only connected to the mainlaind by a narrow strip of land. In Licinio’s painting we are given a strategic view of the countryside on the left and the coast on the right. It was here that the Roman general Scipio Africanus set up camp, cutting the city off from the land while the Roman fleet blockaded it from the sea. The Carthaginians attacked the Romans at the east gate of the city and got close to the Roman camp. Scipio had to use all the might of his forces to hold them off. Then an unexpected storm drained the lagoon into the Mediterranean, allowing the Roman soldiers to approach the city from the north while the naval forces penetrated it from the south.
Here, the viewer is thrust into the centre of the action. Roman soldiers lay siege to the eastern gatehouse of New Carthage as the infantry shelter behind their alternating pink and blue shields, and spears are fired into the city from a great machine of war. The earth tones of the soldiers' skin, the ground and the city walls are broken by a sequence of luminous colours in the costumes – pink, pale blue, lemon yellow, jade green and gold – that articulates the procession of soldiers marching across the panel. The kneeling soldier in pink is probably Scipio as he appears in similar costume in The Continence of Scipio. On the right of the painting some of the soldiers are wading into the lagoon. A plume of smoke rises from the blasted battlements as barefoot soldiers clamber onto one another’s shoulders to scale the city walls.
New Carthage fell to the Romans, forcing the Carthaginians to surrender their extensive territories along the eastern coast of Spain as well as their treasures and silver mines. The Continence of Scipio depicts another episode from the Second Punic War.
Download a low-resolution copy of this image for personal use.
License and download a high-resolution image for reproductions up to A3 size from the National Gallery Picture Library.
License imageThis image is licensed for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons agreement.
Examples of non-commercial use are:
- Research, private study, or for internal circulation within an educational organisation (such as a school, college or university)
- Non-profit publications, personal websites, blogs, and social media
The image file is 800 pixels on the longest side.
As a charity, we depend upon the generosity of individuals to ensure the collection continues to engage and inspire. Help keep us free by making a donation today.
You must agree to the Creative Commons terms and conditions to download this image.
Scenes from Ancient Roman History
These four pictures are from a series of paintings of scenes from ancient Roman history. They were made for the decoration of a room and were originally painted on panel but have since been transferred to canvas. Their size and horizontal format suggests they were probably intended to be inserted into wall panelling, as was common practice in Renaissance Venice.
The pictures in the National Gallery’s collection show: The Attack on Cartagena; The Continence of Scipio; The Rape of the Sabines; and The Intervention of the Sabine Women. Two other pictures from the same series, Coriolanus and Scipio rewarding the Soldiers, are in a private collection.
These four pictures are from a series of paintings by Giulio Licinio showing scenes from ancient Roman history. They were made for the decoration of a room and were originally painted on panel but have since been transferred to canvas. Their size and horizontal format suggests they were probably intended to be inserted into wall panelling, as was common practice in Renaissance Venice.
The Attack on Cartagena depicts a famous Roman victory by Scipio Africanus over the Carthaginians during the Second Punic War. The Continence of Scipio records Scipio’s mercy as a military leader when he refused a ransom for a female prisoner and returned her safely to her family. The Rape of the Sabines shows a scene from ancient Roman legend, when the men of newly founded Rome abducted women from the neighbouring Sabine nation. The Intervention of the Sabine Women depicts the heroic attempt by the Sabine women to end the war between their Sabine fathers and Roman husbands and bring both sides to peace. There are also two other pictures from the same series in a private collection: Coriolanus and Scipio rewarding the Soldiers. There may originally have been more paintings in the series which are lost.
The Rape of the Sabines and the Intervention of the Sabines are both covered with a discoloured varnish which affects their appearance. Licinio’s approach to colour and the original appearance of this series of paintings can be more easily appreciated in The Attack on Cartagena and The Continence of Scipio.




More paintings by Giulio Licinio


