Androcles c. 1902

"Androcles" is an oil painting by Jean-Léon Gérôme created around 1902. The artwork depicts the famous fable of Androcles, a slave who removes a thorn from the paw of a lion he encounters in the wilderness. The realistic style of Gérôme is exemplified in the detailed rendering of the lion and the figures, set against a darkened background emphasizing the dramatic narrative of the scene. This painting, like many of Gérôme's works, engages with themes of human-animal interaction and the unexpected bonds that can form between them.