# The Killing of Achilles [View the canonical artwork record]() ## Artwork - Artist: [BALESTRA, Antonio]() - Date: 1701-1750 - Technique: Fresco ## Commentary On the short walls of the main hall, faux frames contain The Killing of Achilles and The Abduction of Helen. Balestra's unusual skills as a colourist can be appreciated in these scenes. In The Killing of Achilles, the hero lies on the ground, shown in foreshortened view, killed by the arrow that has pierced his vulnerable heel. In the background, the smiling Paris stands behind a sacrificial altar, having just committed the crime, after promising his sister Polygene to the hero. Polygene, unwitting tool and witness to the ambush, is consoled by her mother, Hecuba, wife of Priam, the king of Troy. ## Related artworks - [Adoration of the Shepherds \(detail\)]() - [Adoration of the Shepherds \(detail\)]() - [Adoration of the Shepherds]() - [St Sebastian Nurced by St Irene]() - [The Abduction of Helen \(detail\)]() - [The Abduction of Helen]() - [The Killing of Achilles \(detail\)]() - [The Triumph of Love \(detail\)]() - [Theseus Discovering his Father's Sword]() - [View of the ceiling]() - [View of the main hall]() - [Virgin and Christ Child with Saints]() ## Attribution [Web Gallery of Art]()