Gods, heroes and old stories
Myths and Legends
The old stories, told in paint. Isfandiyar slaying his dragon in the Shahnama, Hanuman bringing the healing herbs to Rama and Lakshmana, Cranach's judgment of Paris, Diana surprised in her bath, Rubens's river god feasting his guests, Poussin's blind giant walking toward the sunrise, and Tiepolo's gods crowding a ceiling. Persian, Indian and European tellings side by side.
As a puzzle
Crowded, colourful and kind. Figures, armour, wings and bright cloth fill these pictures to the edges, and the book paintings add flat colour inside ruled borders. The soft skies of the Venetian ceilings and the dark grounds behind the nudes are the slower passages, so start with the people and the monsters.
A good size here: 50–250 pieces.
Styles here: Indian PaintingPersian PaintingVenetian PaintingItalian and French BaroqueDutch Golden AgeNorthern RenaissanceFlemish BaroqueItalian RenaissanceAmerican PaintingKorean PaintingFrench RococoBarbizon SchoolAcademic PaintingSymbolism
Painters here: RembrandtPeter Paul RubensLucas Cranach the ElderJohn Singer SargentCamille Corot
28 pictures, pick one to build
"The Feast of Sada", Folio 22v from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1525 
Flora Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn), ca. 1654 
Venus and Cupid Lorenzo Lotto, 1520s 
Astarte John Singer Sargent, ca. 1890–95 
The Judgment of Paris Lucas Cranach the Elder, ca. 1528 
Rama and Lakshmana as Boys Assist the Sage Vishvamitra: Folio from a dispersed Ramayana series Workshop active in the First generation after Nainsukh, ca. 1780 
Figures with dragons Unidentified artist, late 19th–early 20th century 
"Diana, Goddess of the Hunt", Folio from the Davis Album Attributed to 'Ali Quli Jabbadar, early 17th century 
The Toilette of Venus François Boucher, 1751 
Diana and Actaeon (Diana Surprised in Her Bath) Camille Corot, 1836 
The Feast of Acheloüs Peter Paul Rubens, ca. 1615 
Allegory of the Planets and Continents Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1752 
The Companions of Rinaldo Nicolas Poussin, ca. 1633 
The Birth of Venus Alexandre Cabanel, 1875 
The Chariot of Apollo Odilon Redon, 1905–16 
Bellona Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn), 1633 
Venus and Cupid Lucas Cranach the Elder, ca. 1525–27 
Hanuman Revives Rama and Lakshmana with Medicinal Herbs: Illustrated folio from a dispersed Ramayana series Workshop active in the First generation after Nainsukh, ca. 1790 
"The Wedding of Siyavush and Farangis", Folio 185v from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1525–30 
Venus and Adonis Peter Paul Rubens, probably mid-1630s 
Bacchus and Ariadne Giovanni Antonio Pellegrini, 1720s 
Blind Orion Searching for the Rising Sun Nicolas Poussin, 1658 
The Monkey King Vali's Funeral Pyre: Illustrated folio from a dispersed Ramayana series Workshop active in the First generation after Nainsukh, ca. 1780 
"Isfandiyar's Third Course: He Slays a Dragon", Folio 434v from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1530 
The Apotheosis of the Spanish Monarchy Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1760s 
The Trojan Women Setting Fire to Their Fleet Claude Lorrain (Claude Gellée), ca. 1643 
Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana at the Hermitage of Bharadvaja: Illustrated folio from a dispersed Ramayana series Unknown artist, ca. 1780 
The Chariot of Aurora Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1760s