''Andromeda Chained to the Rocks'' (1630) is a 34 by 24.5 cm oil-on-panel painting by the

Dutch Golden Age painter Dutch Golden Age painting is the painting of the Dutch Golden Age, a period in Dutch history roughly spanning the 17th century, during and after the later part of the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) for Dutch independence. The new Dutch Republi ...

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally cons ...

. It is now in the

Mauritshuis The Mauritshuis (; en, Maurice House) is an art museum in The Hague, Netherlands. The museum houses the Royal Cabinet of Paintings which consists of 854 objects, mostly Dutch Golden Age paintings. The collection contains works by Johannes Verme ...

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Andromeda represents Rembrandt's first full length mythological female nude

history painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and Bible ...

and is taken from a story in

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom ...

's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his '' magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the ...

''.

Mythology

In Metamorphoses, Andromeda (mythology) is the daughter of an Ethiopian king and queen, Cepheus and Cassiopeia. Cassiopeia was very boastful about her beauty, and asserted that she was more beautiful than Juno, the queen of the gods and the Nereids. Insulted by Cassiopeia's assertions,

Neptune Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 time ...

sent a sea monster to the Ethiopian coast. Neptune then could only be appeased upon the sacrifice of Andromeda, the king's beautiful virgin daughter, to the sea monster. Andromeda was chained naked to rocks by the coast, awaiting the sea monster.

Perseus In Greek mythology, Perseus ( /ˈpɜːrsiəs, -sjuːs/; Greek: Περσεύς, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus and Bellerophon, the greatest Greek hero and slayer ...

, passing by, noticed the beautiful girl and made a deal with her parents that he would save her, should he be allowed to have her hand in marriage. The king and queen agreed and Andromeda was spared.Ovid, book iv, myth ix.

Damsel in distress

This painting depicts a classic example of the

damsel in distress The damsel in distress is a recurring narrative device in which one or more men must rescue a woman who has either been kidnapped or placed in general peril. Kinship, love, or lust (or a combination of those) gives the male protagonist the motiv ...

. In this theme a beautiful young woman is placed in a perilous situation, usually involving a monster or being trapped in captivity. The damsel can then only be rescued by a hero, whom of which she usually ends up marrying. In this painting, Andromeda has a distressed look on her face as she is completely shackled and unable to move. Although Perseus does not make an appearance in this painting, in similar works we can see Perseus being portrayed in a heroic and graceful light, shown through the use of warm colors and heroic poses.

Depiction of beauty

Many artists such as

Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...

have depicted this story by showing Andromeda, her rescuer Perseus, and the sea monster all in the same composition. Her beauty as described in her source material can be seen in some of these other works, along with Perseus' role as her rescuer. In this work, Rembrandt shies away from classical conventions by showing her not as a glamorous beauty but as a frightened naturalistic looking girl. No other figure is included, but her alarmed look out of the picture space to the right creates narrative tension. The painting is an example of Rembrandt's rejection of idealized beauty. Since he did not believe true beauty existed naturally, he painted women as he saw them; naturally imperfect and flawed.Clark, p. 11. Rembrandt's subsequent nude mythological paintings from this period '' Diana Bathing'' and ''

Danaë In Greek mythology, Danaë (, ; ; , ) was an Argive princess and mother of the hero Perseus by Zeus. She was credited with founding the city of Ardea in Latium during the Bronze Age. Family Danae was the daughter and only child of King Acris ...

'' show his evolving portrayal of the nude. File:Perseo y Andrómeda, por Tiziano.jpg, '' Perseus and Andromeda'',

, Wallace Collection Image:Vasari, perseo e andromeda, studiolo.jpg,

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work '' The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculp ...

, ''Perseus and Andromeda'', 1570 File:D'arpino-Andromède.jpg, ''Perseus and Andromeda'' by Giuseppe Cesari (1568–1640) File:Persus and Andromeda by Joachim Wtewael.jpg, Joachim Wtewael, Louvre File:Peter Paul Rubens - Andromeda - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Perseus Freeing Andromeda'' by Rubens File:Delacroix Andromeda.jpg, ''Perseus and Andromeda'' by

Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: Britis ...

Image:1840 Chasseriau Theodore - Andromeda Chained to the Rock by the Nereids.jpg, ''Andromeda Chained to the Rock by the Nereids'' (1840) by

Théodore Chassériau Théodore Chassériau (September 20, 1819 – October 8, 1856) was a Dominican-born French Romantic painter noted for his portraits, historical and religious paintings, allegorical murals, and Orientalist images inspired by his travels to Alger ...

Notes

References

, Translated by A.D. Melville, ''

'', Oxford University Press, 1998. *Clark, Kenneth, ''Rembrandt and the Italian Renaissance.'', New York University Press, 1966 {{ACArt Mythological paintings by Rembrandt 1631 paintings Paintings in the collection of the Mauritshuis Paintings of Andromeda Water in art Paintings based on Metamorphoses