Ulysses and the Sirens
by Herbert James Draper, 1909
StyleAcademic Art
Artwork Details
Details
- Year
- 1909
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Size
- 177 cm × 213.5 cm
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Dating to 1909, dramatic scene in 1909, showing Ulysses bound to the mast while sirens clamber aboard his ship. The muscular sea-nymphs reach toward the struggling hero, their wet bodies glistening as waves crash around the vessel. Draper reimagined the sirens as dangerous beauties rather than the bird-women of ancient texts.
The painting exemplifies late Academic Art, combining classical subject matter with sensuous realism. Draper excelled at mythological scenes featuring water and the female form. Now at the Ferens Art Gallery in Hull, measuring 177 × 213.5 cm.
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About Ulysses and the Sirens
This painting hangs at the Ferens Art Gallery in Hull, England. The gallery holds an excellent collection of British art and Old Masters, with Draper's work being among its most popular pieces.
The scene comes from Homer's Odyssey. Ulysses ordered his men to plug their ears with wax and bind him to the mast so he could safely hear the sirens' song, which lured sailors to their deaths. Draper shows the sirens as beautiful women.
Ancient Greeks depicted sirens as bird-women, but Victorian artists preferred beautiful human forms. Draper's sensuous, wet-skinned sirens climbing the ship created a more dramatic and appealing image for contemporary audiences.
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