Why it matters
Botticelli recreated a lost ancient painting by Apelles, known only from a description by Lucian: an innocent man is dragged before a king with donkey's ears by Calumny and her companions. It is the only Botticelli that clearly tries to recreate an ancient composition almost in full.
Did you know?
- It was completed around 1494–1495.
- Alberti had recommended the subject to artists in his treatise De pictura of 1435.
- It is small, only 62 × 91 cm, and may have been painted for Botticelli's own use.
Based on the Wikipedia article Calumny of Apelles (CC BY-SA 4.0).
