Columns of the Temple of Neptune at Paestum

Constantin Hansen Danish

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 806

In June 1838, as part of his extended Italian sojourn (1835–43), Hansen visited the Hellenic complex at Paestum, about fifty miles south of Naples. To compose this view, he stood within the so-called Temple of Neptune, using its massive fluted Doric columns to frame the distant Temple of Athena. This study owes a debt to Hansen’s early training as an architect, a career he abandoned in order to study with the leading lights of the golden age of Danish painting, Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg and his pupil Christen Købke.

Columns of the Temple of Neptune at Paestum, Constantin Hansen (Danish, Rome 1804–1880 Frederiksberg), Oil on canvas

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.