Shop art print and framed art Les roses de Héliogabale by Lawrence Alma-Tadema

The Roses of Heliogabalus was painted in 1888 by the British painter Lawrence Alma-Tadema. It measures 131.8 × 213.4 cm. It is held in a private collection. It depicts a fictional episode in the life of the Roman emperor Heliogabalus. Alma-Tadema is said to have drawn his inspiration from the History of Augustus: "[Heliogabalus] used the reversible roof of a banqueting hall to rain violets and other flowers on his guests in such abundance that several of them, unable to emerge to the surface, seemed to die of suffocation". According to Dion Cassius, the emperor, along with his mother and grandmother, offered secret sacrifices for himself, slitting the throats of children and performing spells. The author of the History of Augustus also reinforces this point. The historian Robert Turcan takes up the story in these terms: "Like Nero, he had dining rooms with sliding ceilings from which a mass of flowers, violets and other species suddenly collapsed, suffocating the unfortunate guests, who were unable to crawl out of the heap (...)". Flower beds are part of a very ancient ritual practice that is attested to in Greece and Rome, particularly on the occasion of festivals in honour of fertility divinities. The violets mentioned in the History of Augustus (of which the painter owned a German translation)[ref. requested], thus become roses that fall from the white tarpaulin supposed to protect from the sun. According to Ovid, during the floralia, the ritual banquet, the tables [...]

 

This artwork is a painting from the modern period. It belongs to the academism style.

 

« Les roses de Héliogabale » is kept at Private collection.

 

Find the full description of Les roses de Héliogabale by Lawrence Alma-Tadema on Wikipedia.