Guido Reni "Daphne".248

Have you seen what a wonderful painting? It looks like it is Italian. And it is indeed. You must know that at the end of the 18th century many crucial masterpieces as regards history of art were brought from Italy to Russia by Prince Nikolai Yusupov. He was a counsellor of Catherine the Great and her heir Paul I. A patron, traveller and collector under the aegis of the Empress, Prince Yusupov travelled all over Europe and met such important personalities such as Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, Joseph II of Habsburg and the philosopher Voltaire. I guess he had a really interesting life. And he had indeed. On behalf of the Empress, he bought several masterpieces which now constitute the very heart of the Hermitage collection in Saint Petersburg. But since he loved art, his own collection included many wonderful pieces of art, such as the painting before which we are standing now. I see. And can you tell me who are these beautiful girls? She looks like a mythological character. And that's right. This is the new Daphne. According to the legend, the god of light Apollon, struck by Ares's arrow, fell in love with her. To escape from this non-corresponding passion, she turned to her father, the river Knaus, for help, and he transformed her into a laurel tree, which in ancient Greek was called Daphne. Or at least that's what Ovid wrote in his Metamorphoses. Oh sure, I had already heard this letter. But when was the painting made and by whom? This is a painting by the Bolognese painter Guido Reni, one of the most important painters, artists of the Accademia dei Illuminati, who lived at the turn of the 17th century. In fact, this painting is part of a diptych which Prince Yusupov bought right in Italy at the end of the 18th century. Can you imagine who was represented on the other painting? Let me think. Maybe Apollo? That's right. Guido Reni's Apollo is still in Arkhangelsk Palace, where Yusupov lived, while our Daphne traveled all over Russia and finally got to Omsk. These two paintings survived the Napoleonic War of 1812, when they were moved by Prince Yusupov to Astrakhan and a terrible fire which broke out in Arkhangelsk Palace in January 1820. After the fire, Prince Yusupov had the painting restored and the sign of this, as well as other restorations, can be seen on our Daphne. I see. But how has the painting got right here in Omsk? After Prince Yusupov's death, the painting was moved from Arkhangelsk Palace to the Yusupov Palace in St. Petersburg and then stayed until 1919. Then, after the nationalization of goods on part of the Soviet authorities, the palace changed function and this painting was destined to Siberian Museum. And that's why its destiny became one with the original Omsk Museum, named after Mikhail Kruger, and we can now admire it in all its beauty.