Sculptuur van Tullus Hostilius 1646 - 1670

This is Hubert Quellinus's sculpture of Tullus Hostilius, though the exact date of its creation remains unknown. Quellinus lived and worked during the Dutch Golden Age, a period marked by both immense artistic achievement and complex social stratification. The choice to depict Tullus Hostilius, the legendary third king of Rome, speaks volumes about the cultural values of Quellinus's time. In Quellinus’s depiction, we see a Roman leader, frozen in stone, his gaze fixed on an eternal horizon. The elaborate details of his armor and the stoic expression on his face reinforce the traditional narrative of male strength and leadership that was so embedded in the social fabric of the 17th century. But what stories are not being told here? What voices are absent from this heroic depiction? It’s in these absences that we can begin to question the narratives of power and the politics of representation that continue to shape our understanding of history and identity.