The subject depicted in this splendid canvas is the Rape of the Sabine Women, an episode narrated by Titus Livius and Plutarch, recounting a "festival" organized by Romulus (founder and first king of Rome). The invitees are the Sabines, a population present in the territories between the rivers Tiber, Nera, Aniene, and Aterno. The hidden intent is to kill the Sabine men in order to abduct their wives and daughters, and marry them to future Roman citizens to populate the nascent city. The episode, often depicted on canvas, is an autograph work by the painter Giovanni Battista Merano, born in Genoa in 1632, a student of G. Andrea de Ferrari first and later of Valerio Castello (who he never abandoned as his inspirational model and, in particular, as a fresco master). He worked not only in Genoa, in contact with a culturally vibrant environment, but also for Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, where he had the opportunity to study Correggio and Parmigianino, and it was in the city of Piacenza that he died in 1698. The canvas, in good condition, has a non-coeval gilded frame that further enhances its beauty. Dimensions: Canvas 50.5 x 69.5 cm - Frame 72 x 85 cm