Early modern · Cleveland Museum of Art · 1981.227
Andromeda
Antonio Tarsia, c. 1720–30
Cleveland Museum of Art · Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Sherman E. Lee in memory of Professor Donald Weeks · Public domain
- Artist
- Antonio Tarsia
- Date
- c. 1720–30
- Medium
- terracotta
- Dimensions
- Overall: 25.5 x 32 x 19.5 cm (10 1/16 x 12 5/8 x 7 11/16 in.)
- Era
- Early modern
Why it matters
To stop attacks by a sea monster sent to punish Queen Cassiopeia for bragging that she was more beautiful than the nymphs of the sea, an oracle decreed that her virgin daughter, Andromeda, be tied to a rock and sacrificed to the creature. The hero Perseus would eventually save her, but artists often chose this moment as an opportunity to display a young, nude woman, justified by a veneer of mythology.