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What story inspired The Death of Sardanapalus?
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Eugène Delacroix
Liberty Leading the People, oil on canvas by Eugène Delacroix, 1830; in the Louvre, Paris.
The painting The Death of Sardanapalus (1826/27) by the French Romantic artist Eugène Delacroix was directly inspired by the 1821 play Sardanapalus written by Lord Byron.1
The work depicts the final moments of the legendary Assyrian king Sardanapalus. According to the legend, upon facing a major military defeat, the king chose to destroy everything he possessed rather than surrender to his enemies. He ordered the execution of his horses, slaves, and concubines and commanded that his palace treasures be gathered onto a massive pyre, where he ultimately burned himself to death. Delacroixâs masterpiece captures this scene of chaotic violence and extreme decadence, reflecting the dramatic intensity characteristic of Byron's writing.12