Triumph of the Amazons

In the pictureBeneath a large tree, women warriors on white and brown horses crowd together with spears and swords raised, while fallen soldiers and broken weapons lie scattered on the ground. Behind them are blue mountains and sky, and a red banner appears on the right. The figures are small, but their armor, helmets and even the horses' trappings are painted in fine detail.

BackgroundThe Amazons are a tribe of women warriors from Greek mythology. Claude Déruet worked in Nancy, in eastern France, as court painter to the Duke of Lorraine, painting lavish festival scenes and mythological subjects, and this picture forms a pair with The Departure of the Amazons in the same museum. The care lavished on the ornament of the horses and armor and on the grouping of the figures, rather than on the brutality of battle, reflects courtly taste.

Puzzle tipWith so many small figures, every piece is full of clues. Assemble the two white horses, the red banner and the trunk of the large tree on the left first, fill the top with the blue pieces of sky and mountains, then place the remaining groups of figures while checking against the preview. This is a picture worth taking on at Expert (about 300 pieces).