The oarsmen in Agnes Pringle’s painting

Pringle’s painting depicts a scene taking place after the Battle of Actium, where the Roman leader Octavian defeated the forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt. Antony. and Cleopatra are fleeing by boat.

Queen Cleopatra’s boat would have been rowed by soldiers, and the job of an oarsman was skilled and valued in ancient Egypt.

However, Agnes Pringle seems to have mistakenly assumed that the rowers would have been enslaved people, and shows an overseer with a whip. Victorian artists sometimes had a romanticised view of the past and did not fully acknowledge the suffering of servitude and slavery.

Paintings that depict enslaved people can be troubling and challenging to look at. What role should they play in a public museum like the Laing? We hope that this picture will prompt discussion and reflection about slavery. You can tell us what you think on social media – find the Laing Art Gallery on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LaingArtGallery – or by emailing us on info@laingartgallery.org.uk.

Provenance: Bequest from the artist, 1934

Object description
Type: Easel painting
Location: Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyne & Wear
Material: Oil on canvas
Artist: Agnes Pringle (1853-1954)
Date: 1897

Image Details
Date: 27 January 2024
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/32s
ISO: 400
Licensing: Image of a North East Museums asset. This image cannot be licensed.