Allegorical Scene

This work might have been painted in the Eighties. The subject refers to the Battle of Zama or, more generally, to the African Campaign conducted by Scipio between 204 and 201 BC. The woman raising the cup could be identified with Sophonisba, Syphax’s wife: since her husband was defeated, she poisoned herself to avoid becoming a slave of the Romans. The woman, depicted in a modern dress, is close to the women painted by Guttuso, an important subject in his paintings as well in his life. On the left side there is a man, whose features remind those of the Painter. The figurative framework, very well defined, recalls his suggestive and intensity works