The Sanctuary of Hercules

1884

Arnold Böcklin

Associated Names
Arnold Böcklin

Artist, Swiss, 1827 - 1901

This is a painting of four people outside of a circular stone wall that contains a statue and several trees. The four people are on the left, next to an opening in the curving wall. Three of them are kneeling on the marble steps, facing the right, while the fourth stands, looking off to the left. The people are dressed in colorful draping cloths with plumed silver helmets and brown sandals. The standing person and one of the kneeling people carry tall spears. They all appear to have light skin and brown hair. In the center, tall trees are partially obscured by the stone wall. They have brown trunks and leaves in shades of green and orange. The stones below are covered with orange leaves. The wall itself is made of irregular stones in shades of pale yellow, brown, gray, and white. To the right of the trees, a dark statue is partially visible, showing a man in a helmet, facing the left. The sky behind the scene is dark, filled with heavy gray clouds.

Media Options

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In Arnold Böcklin's Sanctuary of Hercules, three soldiers kneel reverently on the outer step of a shrine, while a fourth looks defiantly off into the distance. The sky, a rich panoply of gray, blue, and white, signals an approaching storm, and a strong wind whips through the trees, scattering the leaves and ruffling the plumes on the soldiers' helmets. At the painting's focal point is the sanctuary itself constructed of stones which are trimmed with polished marble and rest upon an equally smooth circular base. Within the enclosure is a sacred grove of massive trees and at the back, seen in darkened profile, a statue of Hercules, mythical hero and protector from danger.

At first glance, the subject appears very realistic and the shrine archaeologically accurate. Yet the scene also conveys a definite mood of mystery. The stones' pure and richly harmonious colors glow with an unnatural radiance. The gloom inside the grove is equaled by the dark ominous clouds, lit by flashes of lightning on the horizon. Indebted to the romantics of the first half of the nineteenth century, Böcklin rejected the idea of painting solely from nature, and strove to express his own feelings through nature, with the use of vibrant coloration and dramatic lighting.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on wood

  • Credit Line

    Andrew W. Mellon Fund

  • Dimensions

    overall: 113.8 x 180.5 cm (44 13/16 x 71 1/16 in.)
    framed: 142.24 × 210.19 × 8.26 cm (56 × 82 3/4 × 3 1/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1976.36.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Dr. Carl Steinbart [1852-1923], Berlin, by 1885.[1] (Kunsthandlung Fritz Gurlitt, Berlin), in 1886.[2] Julie Ginsberg, Berlin, by 1897.[3] Dr. Arthur von Weinberg [1860-1943], Frankfurt-am-Main, by 1904; by inheritance to his adopted daughters, Charlotte Frederike, Princess Ferdinand Lobkowicz [1896-1973], Frankfurt-am-main, and Marie Elisabeth, Gräfin von Spreti [1892-1969]; presumably by inheritance to Marie Elisabeth's daughter, Alexandra-Beatrix Scherping [b. 1929, née Countess von Spreti], Schloss Pähl, Bavaria. (Galerie Bruno Meissner, Zurich), by 1975;[4] purchased 1976 by NGA.
[1] Steinbart's name is written three times in various locations on the reverse of the panel; see notes and photos in NGA curatorial files.
[2] The Gurlitt name is given in Rolf Andree, Arnold Böcklin: Die Gemälde, Basel and Munich, 1977: 451, no. 378, repro.
[3] Mrs. Ginsberg lent the painting to an 1897 exhibition in Berlin.
[4] Provenance provided by Galerie Bruno Meissner. See also letter dated 3 August 1976 from Prince Edouard de Lobkowicz in NGA curatorial files.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1897

  • Akademische Ausstellung von Werken Arnold Böcklin zur feier seines 70. geburtstages, Königliche Akademi der Künste, Berlin, 1897-1898, no. 58.

1974

  • Arnold Boecklin 1827-1901, Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf, 1974, no. 51

Bibliography

1977

  • Andree, Rolf. Arnold Böcklin: Die Gemälde. Basel and Munich, 1977: 451, no. 378, repro.

1979

  • Watson, Ross. The National Gallery of Art, Washington. New York, 1979: 118, pl. 104.

1984

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 414, no. 592, color repro.

1985

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 50, repro.

1992

  • National Gallery of Art, Washington. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 73, repro.

Inscriptions

lower right: AB

Wikidata ID

Q20189707

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