Alexander the Great and Timoclea (?)

A photograph of a drawing currently in the Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt (inv. no.383). Other drawings of this subject survive in the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick (inv. no.1956.25.209; ex Poynter Collection) and in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lille (inv. Pl 367). Both are generally reputed copies after a lost original by Raphael, often identified with the Frankfurt drawing. Photographs of these drawings can be found at RCINs 852197, 852198. The subject is an ongoing matter of debate. It has been often interpreted as Timoclea brought before Alexander the Great, but the fearful attitude of the woman seems to discard this interpretation. For further discussion, see Bibliographic References.