Oil on canvas, 152.5cm by 294.5cm.
In the 5th Century B.C. Gaius Coriolanus, a disaffected Roman general, was commanding the army of an enemy tribe, the Volsces, and besieging Rome, which is here depicted in the distance.
During the siege he was petitioned by Roman matrons, including his wife and his mother, to spare the city.
This he valiantly did, by withdrawing his army, despite knowing that he would ultimately be sealing his own fate.
Antonio Palma was a member of a leading family of artists in early 16th Century Venice.
