Image: Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
View source →The Rape of the Sabine Women
Pablo Picasso, 1963
Technical Details
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
195 × 130 cm (76.8 × 51.2 in)
Style
Expressionism / Late Period
Decade
1960s
About This Work
This large, violent canvas depicts the classical subject of the Rape of the Sabine Women with the raw, expressionistic energy of Picasso's late style. Figures are locked in violent struggle, their bodies rendered in harsh, angular forms. The work was painted in response to the Cuban Missile Crisis and reflects Picasso's horror at the prospect of nuclear war.
Picasso painted several versions of the Rape of the Sabine Women in 1962–63, inspired by Poussin's and David's treatments of the same subject. The works are widely interpreted as anti-war statements in response to the nuclear tensions of the Cold War. The Boston version is the largest and most powerful.
Current Location
Valuation & Provenance
2026 Estimated Value
$20–35 million (est.)
* Estimates are based on comparable auction results and market analysis. Not a formal appraisal.
Last Known Sale
No public auction record — held in permanent museum collection
Keywords
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Picasso: A Biography by John Richardson
Comprehensive biography exploring Picasso's life and artistic evolution
Picasso Museum Exhibition Catalogs
Official exhibition catalogs from major Picasso retrospectives
Picasso: A Life Documentary
Comprehensive documentary chronicling Picasso's entire artistic journey
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