{"product_id":"2026200014990-secondhand-delacroix-the-death-of-sardanapalus","title":"Delacroix: The Death Of Sardanapalus","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good\u003cbr\u003eJacket: Very good\u003cbr\u003ePages: Good\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne of the most explosive and controversial canvases in the history of Western art, Eugène Delacroix's The Death of Sardanapalus (1827) shattered the decorum of the Paris Salon with its swirling orgy of violence, colour, and despair — and Jack J. Spector's incisive study presents a commanding account of how this monumental work came to be, and why it still commands our attention nearly two centuries later. Drawing on the mythic tale of the Assyrian king who, facing defeat, ordered the destruction of all his possessions — his horses, his concubines, and his treasures — before immolating himself upon a vast funeral pyre, Spector reconstructs the intellectual, biographical, and political climate that drove Delacroix to produce his most audacious masterpiece.\n\nPart of the distinguished Art in Context series, this scholarly yet accessible volume situates the painting within the turbulent currents of French Romanticism, unpacking the literary sources from Byron's dramatic poem to ancient historical accounts, while also illuminating the psychological and aesthetic obsessions that defined Delacroix's singular vision. Spector's meticulous analysis of compositional structure, colour theory, and critical reception argues convincingly that Sardanapalus is not merely a Romantic spectacle but a profound meditation on power, mortality, and artistic transgression. For scholars, students, and passionate admirers of nineteenth-century European painting alike, this is an essential guide to a work that continues to disturb, seduce, and astonish.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49203109724379,"sku":"2026200014990-SECONDHAND","price":20.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/b8d03d1f-03a4-4e98-8361-bccbbda7b854.png?v=1788143947","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026200014990-secondhand-delacroix-the-death-of-sardanapalus","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}