Von Theosena des fürsten herodici tochter · Centre for Early Modern Visual Culture

Title: Von Theosena des fürsten herodici tochter
Subject: Important Women; Famous Women; Poris; King Philip; Suicide; Theoxena
Period: 1450-1500;
Geographic: Ancient Greece; Thessaly
Description: This engraving depicts Theoxena, her husband Poris, and her nephews and child killing themselves. Theoxena and her husband are depicted jumping from the ship head-first into the sea to drown themselves. They are illustrated holding each other as they die as a couple. Theoxena’s name, written as Theosen, is engraved at the bottom right corner of the image to identify her. The figures on the ship are her nephews and her son, who are also killing themselves. Theoxena had given them a choice between stabbing themselves with knives, or to drink poison. There are two boys who had stabbed themselves and one child is depicted drinking the poison from a cup. Boccaccio explains that Theoxena and her family killed themselves to avoid dying at the hands of king Philip of Macedon.
Image Creator: Anonymous (Engraver)
Type: Text; Woodcut Engraving
Identifier: mta:18050
Language: ger
Source Name: Hyenach volget der kurcz syn von ettlichen frauen von denen johannes boccacius in latein beschriben hat und doctor heinricus stainhöwel geteütschet [Following the short stories of several women of which Giovanni Boccaccio wrote in Latin, and doctor Heinrich Steinhöwel translated]
Parent Collection: 1473 Augsburg
Image: mta_18050_OBJ.png