The Calumny of Apelles

painting by Sandro Botticelli

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June 22, 2026

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The "Calumny of Apelles" is a painting by Sandro Botticelli created between 1494 and 1495. It is Botticelli's last known surviving secular history painting and depicts a scene described by the classical Greek writer Lucian. Lucian's account was itself a description of a lost painting by the ancient Greek artist Apelles. Apelles created his allegorical work to respond to a false accusation of plotting against the king, which had been made against him by another painter, Antiphilos.1

Botticelli's painting, housed in the Uffizi, follows Lucian's detailed description. It features figures representing Ignorance and Suspicion, and a central figure with donkey's ears who welcomes "Calumny". The work is noted for its intricate detail despite its intimate scale.1

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Sandro Botticelli
Mythological paintings
…of classical antiquity is the Allegory of Slander (c. 1496–97), a subject recommended by Alberti, who took it from a description of a work by the ancient Greek painter Apelles. Botticelli also drew inspiration from classical art more directly. While in Rome in 1481–82, for example, he reproduced that city’s…
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…of classical antiquity is the Allegory of Slander (c. 1496–97), a subject recommended by Alberti, who took it from a description of a work by the ancient Greek painter Apelles. Botticelli also drew inspiration from classical art more directly. While in Rome in 1481–82, for example, he reproduced that city’s…
Read More