This painting and its pair (LL 3524) both show the mythological labours of Hercules. They were sketched for the west (LL 3523) and east (LL 3524) coves of the ceiling of Portland House’s Great Room. Portland House in London was begun in about 1710 and the Great Room finished in the summer of 1713. It later became known as Norfolk House and was demolished in 1938. 

The sketches can be dated to about 1712. They show: Hercules dragging Cerberus from the underworld, Hercules fighting with Achelous (as a man), Hercules wrestling the Nemean Lion, Hercules attacking the Hydra, Hercules breaking the horn of Achelous (as a bull), and Hercules slaying Cacus.

Labours of Hercules | National Museums Liverpool

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This painting and its pair (LL 3524) both show the mythological labours of Hercules. They were sketched for the west (LL 3523) and east (LL 3524) coves of the ceiling of Portland House’s Great Room. Portland House in London was begun in about 1710 and the Great Room finished in the summer of 1713. It later became known as Norfolk House and was demolished in 1938. The sketches can be dated to about 1712. They show: Hercules dragging Cerberus from the underworld, Hercules fighting with Achelous (as a man), Hercules wrestling the Nemean Lion, Hercules attacking the Hydra, Hercules breaking the horn of Achelous (as a bull), and Hercules slaying Cacus.

Labours of Hercules

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