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Queen Semiramis, the embodiment of Art Nouveau

Acquired by the Italian Ministry of Culture through the right of first refusal, the work has been displayed at the Royal Palace of Turin until Jan. 21, 2025.


Cesare Saccaggi, In Babylon (Semiramis), c. 1905, oil on canvas with gold and colored stones, 240 x 140
Cesare Saccaggi, In Babylon (Semiramis), c. 1905, oil on canvas with gold and coloured stones, 240 x 140

In Babylon (Semiramis), is a Babylonian queen designed in the Art Nouveau style by Piedmontese artist Cesare Saccaggi around 1905. The canvas depicts the legendary queen Semiramis, a mythological figure who founded Babylon, as an irresistible seductress, recalling famous women of early 20th-century society, such as the actress and sculptress Sarah Bernhardt.

A Babylonian queen designed in the Art Nouveau style.


Haughty and unattainable, Semiramis, turns her gaze from above upon the beholder. Her body is covered only by a light, transparent robe, defined by luminous touches that suggest her progress with the precious net that covers her bust, leaving her breasts visible.






The gold jewellery enhances the whiteness of the skin, bracelets and rings that adorn the hands and feet. The surface of the work is dotted with small coloured stones, inserted directly into the pictorial material, making the whole even more realistic.


The painting A Babylon (Semiramis) highlights Saccaggi's Orientalist taste, influenced by the style of the Viennese Secession and the painting current of French origin prone to exoticism.


Another source of inspiration for Saccaggi was the Lady of Elche, the ancient female bust found in Spain in 1897, taken up to paint the Babylonian queen's precious headdress.




How can one not be enchanted by this painting? Personally, when I found myself in front of Queen Semiramis during my last visit to the Royal Palace in Turin I was enraptured and mesmerized by its beauty and details. Being a lover of Alphonse Mucha's illustrations, Cesare Saccaggi's Queen of Babylon was a pleasant discovery for me and will be going to occupy a place of excellence in my top ten charts of Art Nouveau artworks.

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