The Consecration of Decius Mus 1620 - 1650

Antoine Sallaert made this print, "The Consecration of Decius Mus," in Belgium sometime in the early 17th century. Prints like this were often made as preparatory studies for larger paintings, but they were also sold and collected as artworks in their own right. Sallaert’s print depicts a scene from Roman history, where the Roman general Decius Mus is being consecrated before going into battle. Sallaert was a Catholic artist working in a region then under Spanish control, and the image carries a sense of Catholic piety and honor, even though the scene depicts pre-Christian Rome. It seems designed to support the hierarchical values of his time. To understand this print more fully, we might research the traditions of printmaking in 17th-century Belgium, as well as the use of classical subjects in the art of the period.