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Lot Essay
These tapestries represent three incidents in the romantic story of Queen Sophonisba and Masinissa, as told by Livy. Masinissa was the son of a Numidian King, Gala, whose dominions bordered on those of Carthage and sided with the Romans in their wars with the Carthaginians. Sophonisba was a daughter of the Carthaginian Hasdrubal and was promised in marriage to Masinissa, but instead married Syphax, the Prince of Western Numidia, shortly after which the latter was defeated by Masinissa and driven out of the country.
Masinissa married Sophonisba in the wake of his victory when she came to pay homage to him, and it is to this incident that the first tapestry relates.
Scipio, the Roman general, required Masinissa to dismiss her as a Carthaginian and enemy of Rome. To save her from humiliation, Masinissa sent her poison with which to destroy herself and this is depicted in the second tapestry.
Masinissa continued to make war on Carthage and his pretensions to the throne thereof were favoured by a section of its citizens, to which the third tapestry most likely refers.
Masinissa died c.149 B.C. during the third Punic War, which ended in the final overthrow of Carthage.
Masinissa married Sophonisba in the wake of his victory when she came to pay homage to him, and it is to this incident that the first tapestry relates.
Scipio, the Roman general, required Masinissa to dismiss her as a Carthaginian and enemy of Rome. To save her from humiliation, Masinissa sent her poison with which to destroy herself and this is depicted in the second tapestry.
Masinissa continued to make war on Carthage and his pretensions to the throne thereof were favoured by a section of its citizens, to which the third tapestry most likely refers.
Masinissa died c.149 B.C. during the third Punic War, which ended in the final overthrow of Carthage.