The Expiation of Orestes
Date
1813
Creator
Location
Raclin Murphy Museum of Art
Buck was born in...[Cork] and trained as a miniaturist before moving to London where he cultivated a wealthy clientele for his portraits made in the fashionable neoclassical style. This watercolor is one of his few mythological subjects, and it tells the story of Orestes who went mad from guilt after he murdered his mother and her lover in revenge for the death of his father, Agamemnon. Orestes was saved by Athena to whom he built an altar in gratitude. The subject was taken directly from an ancient Greek vase pictured in a group portrait of Adam Buck and his family (Yale Center for British Art). from Calendar of Events, Spring & Summer 2019
![Buck was born in...[Cork] and trained as a miniaturist before moving to London where he cultivated a wealthy clientele for his portraits made in the fashionable neoclassical style. This watercolor is one of his few mythological subjects, and it tells the story of Orestes who went mad from guilt after he murdered his mother and her lover in revenge for the death of his father, Agamemnon. Orestes was saved by Athena to whom he built an altar in gratitude. The subject was taken directly from an ancient Greek vase pictured in a group portrait of Adam Buck and his family (Yale Center for British Art).
from Calendar of Events, Spring & Summer 2019](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fiiif-image.library.nd.edu%2Fiiif%2F2%2F2018.072.002%2F2018_072_002-v0001%2Ffull%2Ffull%2F0%2Fdefault.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
Our collection information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. If you have spotted an error, please contact Raclin Murphy Museum of Art at RMMACollections@nd.edu.