At first this seems a strange subject for a painting: a young woman giving her breast to an old man tied up in chains in a bare prison cell. In fact it is a story from Roman History.
Cimon is Pero's father. He is in prison awaiting execution and has been given nothing to eat. Pero has recently had a child and saves her father from starvation by secretly giving him her breast. This relatively large picture was painted by the famous Antwerp artist, Peter Paul Rubens. To enliven the scene, Rubens has added two prying prison guards on the right.
Pero is portrayed as a voluptuous young woman. Strong, fleshy women like Pero became Rubens's trademark. Today they are often called 'Rubens women'. Even the starving Cimon is portrayed with a strong body and substantial amount of fat. Rubens was skilled at painting the human body: here he has rendered the old man in a highly convincing way, using rough brush marks of beige-yellow, pink and blue. He has also used rapid strokes of the brush and lively colours for the woman's blond hair and red dress. This style is characteristic of Rubens's later work. The raw, grey prison walls in the background provide a wonderful contrast.
[Oil on canvas, 155 x 190 cm]
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