Panthea, Cyrus, and Araspas
Laurent de La Hyre (French, 1606-1656)
1631-34
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Materials & printing
Archival matte paper, 189 g/m² (10.3 mil), sourced from Japan, printed with multicolor water-based inkjet so every brushstroke stays crisp. Framed prints arrive ready to hang in a .75″ ayous-wood frame with an acrylite front. Sized to standard frames by cropping, never stretching — at most about 3% comes off one edge, which isn’t noticeable on most pieces, and we only offer a size when it stays that small.
Shipping & returns
Made to order and delivered in 5–8 business days (2–4 to print, 3–4 in transit). US shipping only for now. Because each print is made for your order, all sales are final — but if it arrives damaged or defective, send us a photo within 14 days and we’ll replace it free. Full policy.
Why is it this affordable?
A thin, flat margin on every piece — just enough to keep the store running. Most of what you pay is the print itself. We only sell sizes that reproduce at full quality, and we don’t mark up the large sizes the way most shops do.
About this work
This is one of two surviving paintings from Laurent de La Hyre’s series illustrating the story of Queen Panthea’s capture by the armies of Cyrus the Great, the ancient king of Persia. Cyrus, shown here in blue, refused even to gaze upon the beautiful queen, choosing instead to concentrate on affairs of state and turning her care over to his friend Araspas, who ultimately fell in love with her to tragic consequences. La Hyre’s take on this tale of the conflict between love and civic duty was probably made as part of a suite of decorations for a reception room or a private cabinet in a Parisian townhouse.
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Original size
- 141.9 × 102 cm (55 7/8 × 40 1/8 in.)
Museum record · 2 owners · 3 exhibitions
Provenance
- Art market, Germany.
- Sold at a public sale, Milan, to Ettore Viancini, Venice; sold by Viancini to Gilberto Algranti, Milan and London; sold by Algranti to Silvano Lodi, Campione d’Italia, and Bruno Meissner, Zurich, 1973, passed solely into Meissner’s possession; sold by Meissner to Art Institute, 1976.
Exhibitions
- Paris, Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, La Peinture française du XVIIe siècle dans les collections américaines, 1982.
- Musée de Grenoble, Laurent de La Hyre, 1606–1656: L’Homme et l’oeuvre, June 13-April 3, 1989; Rennes, France, Musée des Beaux-Arts et d' Archéologie, May 9-August 31, 1989; Bordeaux, Musée des Beaux-Arts, October 6, 1989-January 6, 1990.
- Chicago, David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, The Theartical Baroque, 2001.
