How you can use this image
This image can be used for non-commercial research or private study purposes, and other UK exceptions to copyright permitted to users based in the United Kingdom under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised. Any other type of use will need to be cleared with the rights holder(s).
Review the copyright credit lines that are located underneath the image, as these indicate who manages the copyright (©) within the artwork, and the photographic rights within the image.
The collection that owns the artwork may have more information on their own website about permitted uses and image licensing options.
Review our guidance pages which explain how you can reuse images, how to credit an image and how to find images in the public domain or with a Creative Commons licence available.
Buy a print or image licence
You can purchase this reproduction
If you have any products in your basket we recommend that you complete your purchase from Art UK before you leave our site to avoid losing your purchases.
Notes
Add or edit a note on this artwork that only you can see. You can find notes again by going to the ‘Notes’ section of your account.
Phaeton, son of the sun god Phoebus, persuaded his father to let him steer his chariot, which was led by fire-breathing horses, across the sky. Phaeton’s reckless driving caused rivers to dry up and lands to become desert. Jupiter, ruler of the gods, intervened to prevent further chaos, striking thunderbolts at the chariot and smashing it to pieces, casting Phaeton to his death. In this painting, a group of water nymphs clutch each other in fear, one gesticulating in horror at the sight. The winged figures on the hillock to the right are the Heliades, Phaeton’s sisters, who gesture helplessly, unable to save their brother. The ageing figure reclining in the foreground represents the river Eridanus, into which Phaeton fell. Liss made this picture while he was in Italy, and the landscape background seems to be inspired by the countryside around Rome.
Title
The Fall of Phaeton
Date
about 1624
Medium
Oil on canvas
Measurements
H 126.5 x W 110.3 cm
Accession number
NG6641
Acquisition method
Presented by the Trustees of Sir Denis Mahon's Charitable Trust through the Art Fund, 2013
Work type
Painting
