Pollice Verso
1872 · Oil on canvas · Phoenix Art Museum
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About this work
- Artist
- Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824–1904)
- Year
- 1872
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Original size
- 96.5 × 149.2 cm
- Collection
- Phoenix Art Museum
- Movement
- Academic
A murmillo gladiator plants his foot on the throat of a fallen retiarius and looks up to the imperial box, where the Vestal Virgins, in white, thrust their thumbs down for death; the emperor sits above them and the Colosseum rises behind, with the velarium awning filtering the light. Gérôme painted it in 1872 after years of research into Roman armour, and the title refers to the turned thumb, a gesture whose real meaning is still debated. The picture was bought by the American department-store magnate Alexander Turney Stewart and made Gérôme's reputation in the United States; it was the direct source for the look of the film Gladiator, whose director was shown it before reading the script. It belongs to the Phoenix Art Museum.
This print reproduces the whole work, uncropped, from a high-resolution scan of the original. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
A gladiator standing over a fallen opponent beneath a crowded amphitheatre, in white, gold, red and sand, for a study, home gym or office at 36×24 in black. Terracotta, stone or deep red walls suit the arena; pair it with Washington Crossing the Delaware for a pair of grand history scenes.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Academic painting
- Era
- 19th century (1872)
- Orientation
- Landscape
- Mood
- grand
- Rooms
- study or library, home office, home gym, living room, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 36×24. Prints at 18×12, 24×16, 36×24 in — 18×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×16 above a console or sideboard; 36×24 as the statement piece above a sofa or headboard.
Framing. The gallery ground is part of the print, so frame it without a mat — black suits the deep tones of this period; natural wood lightens it.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is Pollice Verso in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was Pollice Verso painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
An exhibition poster
The same artwork as a gallery exhibition poster — title, artist & date typeset beneath the image on a soft ground.
