The Death of Seneca, 1773 (oil on canvas)

The Death of Seneca (Main title) David, Jacques-Louis Having been ordered by Emperor Nero to commit suicide, the Roman philosopher Seneca slits his wrists, along with his wife Pauline, who chooses to die with him. Seated in an armchair in a palace, Seneca asks the servants to keep his wife away from him, so that one does not weaken at the sight of the other's suffering. A doctor cuts the philosopher's ankles to make the blood flow faster, in a basin placed at his feet, and a slave presents him with a vial of poison on a tray. In the background, a centurion dispatched by Nero watches over the execution of the sentence. On the right, a disciple writes down the last words of the Stoic philosopher, whose death sets an example of the highest moral virtues in the face of tyranny.the subject illustrates Stoicism and the desire to draw from antiquity examples of human behavior of the highest moral value, likely to serve as a model for contemporary audiences. Inventory number: PDUT1166