Beata Beatrix
Dante Gabriel Rossetti was a founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a circle of Victorian artists united in their regard for medieval aesthetics. Inspired by his namesake, Dante, Rossetti drew parallels in this work between the Italian poet's love for Beatrice and his own affection for his deceased wife and muse, Elizabeth Siddal, a talented artist and writer who died at age 32.
Colors in this work
Details
- Artist
- Dante Gabriel Rossetti
- Date
- 1871–72
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 87.5 × 69.3 cm (34 7/16 × 27 1/4 in.); Predella: 26.5 × 69.2 cm (10 7/16 × 27 1/4 in.); Framed: 156.2 × 102.9 cm (61 1/2 × 40 1/2 in.)
- Origin
- England
- Department
- Painting and Sculpture of Europe
- Holding institution
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Palette
-
Select a color to find related artworks.
- Image provider
- art-institute-chicago
- License
- CC0-1.0
- Credit
- Charles L. Hutchinson Collection
Art Genome Taxonomy
12 tags
Subject Matter
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Love Both · 97%
Love is a canonical subject, and the central figure and surrounding literary-symbolic scene are organized around an idealized love narrative.
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Mourning and Commemoration Both · 96%
The catalog describes the painting as a tribute to Rossetti’s deceased wife and muse and connects it with grief; the closed-eyed, still figure and consoling lower scene support a commemorative reading.
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Mortality Metadata · 94%
The canonical description explicitly links the work to death, Siddal’s overdose, and Rossetti’s meditation on personal loss.
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Flora Both · 99%
Trees, foliage, bushes, flowers, and a poppy are clearly visible in the main panel and predella, and flora is listed among the canonical subjects.
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Animals Both · 97%
A prominent bird appears beside the central figure; the museum catalog identifies it as a haloed dove delivering a white poppy.
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Allegory Metadata · 94%
The catalog describes a network of symbolic correspondences, including the personification of Love, the dove and poppy, the bridge, the sundial, and the parallel between Dante’s Beatrice and Rossetti’s personal history.
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Related to Literature Metadata · 99%
The work is explicitly inspired by Dante Alighieri’s La vita nuova and incorporates figures and imagery from that literary narrative.
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The Afterlife Both · 93%
The museum identifies the predella as Beatrice and Dante’s reunion in paradise, while the image visibly includes a separate lower scene populated by several figures in a garden setting.
Styles and Movements
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Pre-Raphaelites Both · 99%
Canonical metadata identifies Rossetti as a founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, while the image shows medievalizing figures, saturated color, symbolic details, and an integrated decorative frame characteristic of the movement.
Medium and Techniques
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Oil Painting Both · 100%
The museum record specifies oil on canvas, and the image visibly shows a painted work rather than a print, drawing, or sculpture.
Time Periods
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19th Century Art Metadata · 99%
The work is dated 1871–72 in the canonical museum record.
Geographic Regions
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British and Irish Art Metadata · 98%
The canonical record gives England as the place of origin and classifies the work as British and European painting.
Source & rights
Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Beata Beatrix. The Art Institute of Chicago.
High-resolution sources
- IIIF image service ↗ 1,686 × 2,468 · Art Institute Chicago · Availability not yet probed