Could you mistake Didon Statue for Lucrèce or Cleopatra? This statue has borne all these names. Let’s explore the story of this marble figure attributed to Christophe Cochet.
The Didon Statue stands 1.94 meters tall. It is 73 cm wide and weighs 740 kg. The statue dates back to the early 17th century around 1610 to 1630.
Originally, the statue may have been mistaken for other iconic women from antiquity. These women all chose death. The statue could be Didon, Lucrèce, or Cleopatra.
Didon was a Phoenician princess. She became the legendary founder and first queen of Carthage in Tunisia. Virgil tells her story in the Aeneid. The statue’s open mouth is similar to Dosso Dossi’s painting of Didon.
Some thought the Didon Statue was Lucrèce. She was the wife of Tarquin Collatinus. He was close to the Roman king Tarquin the Proud. Lucrèce was violated by the king’s son. She killed herself which marked the transition from Roman monarchy to republic. The statue may hold the weapon she used. Titian’s painting Tarquin and Lucrèce depicts this scene.
Others believed the statue represented Cleopatra. She was the famous queen of Egypt. Cleopatra was the companion of Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. Antony’s defeat at the Battle of Actium ended the Hellenistic period.
Christophe Cochet traveled to Rome from 1615 to 1618 with his friend Simon Vouet. Back in Paris, Cochet gained fame. He became the sculptor for Marie de Médicis at the Palais du Luxembourg.
The Didon Statue originally belonged to the Duke of Montmorency’s collection. Then it passed to Cardinal Richelieu’s collection. After that, it became part of the royal collections. In 1707 and 1722-1723, Didon was inventoried in the Bosquet d’Agrippine. This was in the park of Marly on one of the fountains. In 1795, it was intended for the Palais Bourbon. On March 17, 2000, the Fonds National d’Art Contemporain gave it to the Louvre Museum.
Tristan l’Hermite wrote a poem about the Didon Statue made by Cochet. It is titled “Sur une statue de Didon, faite par Cochet. A Didon” in his book Les Amours de Tristan.
Today, the Didon Statue is in the Louvre-Lens. You can find it in the Galerie du Temps. This statue with its shifting identities invites reflection. What story does the Didon Statue tell you?