3-041-218 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Mithradates Triumphs at a Tournament; Des cas des nobles hommes et femmes, about 1413-1415. Additional Info: The figure wielding the sword and wearing a king's crown over a red hat may be Mithradates, the king of Pontus and Asia, participating in a tournament during the years he spent traveling around Asia as a young man. Disguising his identity, he lived among the locals, captured animals for food, and developed his courage and physical strength. The miniature, however, may allude to King Mithradates' death. Following a series of disastrous wars with the Romans, his own army revolted against him. After poisoning his wives, concubines, and daughters to prevent them falling into the hands of his enemies, he poisoned himself. But since he had previously taken a remedy against the drug, it proved ineffective. In a desperate attempt to end his life, he begged a French soldier, probably a mercenary, to kill him. This image, then, may depict Mithradates' assisted suicide.