Julius Caesar before his assassination

Jacopo da Sellaio painted this scene of Julius Caesar before his assassination around 1480 for a Florentine domestic setting. The assassination of Caesar was a subject with complex political resonance in Republican Florence, where it could symbolize either tyrannicide or treachery. Such ancient Roman history panels adorned the walls and furnishings of wealthy Florentine households. The tempera medium required careful preparation on a gessoed panel and a disciplined layering technique that produced precise, durable surfaces suited to the intricate detail expected of devotional painting.

Tempera on panel with narrative composition depicting the moments before the assassination. The classical subject is rendered in the Florentine decorative painting tradition with detailed architectural setting.