The Gorgon and the Heroes

Giulio Aristide Sartorio · 1895
Oil on canvas
Rome, Italy - Galleria d’Arte Moderna
LDA · XXXII · MMXXV

Source
Book · La Pittura di Storia dell’Ottocento Italiano di Fortunato Bellonzi · Fratelli Fabbri Editori · 1967 · p. 83

The painting depicts a winged Gorgon standing over the fallen bodies of heroes. The figure is identifiable as a Gorgon through the small wings at the temples and ankles, attributes found in archaic and early classical depictions of the sisters of myth. Her nudity and upright posture emphasise invincibility, forming a direct contrast with the defeated figures collapsed at her feet. The coastal setting situates the scene within the mythic geography of the western sea, associated in classical literature with encounters between mortals and monstrous beings.

Reposting welcome; please credit Libreria d’Arte - Studio Soli.

Detail
Wings at the temples and ankles - iconographic markers of the Gorgon in pre-Hellenistic imagery

The gorgon stands on the head of the fallen hero, she has triumphed over him

Detail
The fallen bodies - visual record of the Gorgon’s lethal power within heroic narrative

The shoreline - a mythological threshold where encounters with supernatural beings occur