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Explore the artistBriton Rivière →
The body of a hero left on the shore
In Homer’s Iliad, the Trojan prince Hector is killed by Achilles, who drags his body behind his chariot and refuses to return it. Briton Rivière imagined the body lying abandoned on the shore, with wolves approaching.
He painted Dead Hector in 1892.
A fallen prince
Hector lies face down on the sand, naked, one arm outstretched among spiky sea plants. The pale body is the brightest shape in the picture.
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Dead Hector, painted by hand
Briton Rivière · oil on canvas, made to order
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Wolves gathering
Near the sea, two wolves howl or sniff the air.
In the foreground, a third comes forward, head low. Rivière used the animals to show the shame of the unburied hero, a fate the Greeks considered terrible.
Questions about Dead Hector
Who was Hector?
The Trojan prince killed by Achilles in Homer’s Iliad.
Who painted it?
Briton Rivière, in 1892.
Why are there wolves?
They show the dishonour of a body left unburied.
What happens next in the Iliad?
Hector’s father Priam begs Achilles for the body and buries him.
Sources and image credit
Public-domain reproduction of Dead Hector (1892). Detail images are crops of the same image; no reconstruction or upscaling.
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Make Dead Hector yours
Briton Rivière · oil on canvas, made to order
$299.00$599.0050% off
Bring it home
See sizes and frames
Painted by hand in oil
Free shipping worldwide
90-day money-back guarantee
Real paintings, real brushworkSee what arrives at your doorBrowse all samples → 