Artwork
Battle of Lake Regillus
Battle of Lake Regillus is a fresco painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Tommaso Laureti. It dates from 1596 and is held in the collection of the Capitoline Museums.
About this work
Overview
Scattered stone pedestals and classical statues occupy the foreground, adding a sense of architectural depth to the chaotic scene.
Created in 1596, the fresco titled *Battle of Lake Regillus* presents a tumultuous combat tableau rendered on a wall surface. The composition is dominated by a mass of riders and fallen soldiers, their white and brown horses tangled in motion beneath a storm‑filled sky where a sliver of blue light breaks through. Scattered stone pedestals and classical statues occupy the foreground, adding a sense of architectural depth to the chaotic scene.
Subject & Meaning
The work illustrates a legendary clash traditionally identified as the Battle of Lake Reginius, a foundational myth of early Roman history. By portraying the clash with a profusion of figures and disordered movement, the fresco emphasizes the violence and uncertainty of war, while the inclusion of ruined statues hints at the destruction of cultural heritage amid conflict.
Technique & Style
Executed in the early Baroque manner, the fresco employs illusionistic perspective to draw the viewer into the depth of the battlefield. Laureti’s brushwork reflects the influence of Michelangelo, especially in the muscular anatomy of the figures, while abandoning the elongated forms typical of Mannerism. The use of chiaroscuro and dynamic composition heightens the dramatic tension inherent in the narrative.
History & Provenance
Sicilian-born Tommaso Laureti, trained in Bologna under Sebastiano del Piombo, completed the painting while working in Rome under papal patronage. Since its creation, the fresco has remained in the Capitoline Museums, forming part of the institution’s collection of Baroque decorative cycles that adorn the civic complex on Rome’s Capitoline Hill.
Artist & collection
Artist
Tommaso Laureti, often called Tommaso Laureti Siciliano (c. 1530 – 22 September 1602), was an Italian painter from Sicily who trained in the atelier of the aged Sebastiano del Piombo and worked in Bologna. From 1582, he…
