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The Rape of the Sabine Women, also known as The Abduction of the Sabine Women or The Kidnapping of the Sabine Women, was an incident in Roman mythology in which the men of Rome committed a mass abduction of young women from the other cities in the region. It has been a frequent subject of artists and sculptors, particularly during the Renaissance and post-Renaissance eras.

The word "rape" is the conventional translation of the Latin word raptio used in the ancient accounts of the incident. Modern scholars tend to interpret the word as "abduction" or "kidnapping" as opposed to sexual assault. Controversy remains, however, as to how the acts committed against the women should be judged.

According to Roman historian Livy, the abduction of Sabine women takes place in the early history of Rome shortly after its founding in the mid 8th century BCE and was perpetrated by Romulus and his predominately male followers; it is said that after the foundation of the city the population was solely comprised of male bandits, Latins, and other italic peoples. With Rome growing at such a steady rate in comparison to its neighbors, Romulus became concerned with maintaining the cities strength. His main concern was that without any women inhabitants their was no chance at continuing to populate the city, and if without the ability to maintain its population, the city may not last longer than a generation. On the advice of the senate the Romans then set out into the surrounding regions in the search for wives to establish families with. The Romans negotiated unsuccessfully with the all the peoples that they appealed to including the Sabines, who populated the neighboring areas. The Sabines feared the emergence of a rival society and refused to allow their women to marry the Romans. Consequently, the Romans devised a plan to abduct the Sabine women during the festival of Neptune Equester. They planned and announced a festival of games to attract people from all the nearby towns. According to Livy, many people from Rome's neighboring towns including folk from the Caeninenses, Crustumini, and Antemnates, attended the festival along with the Sabines, eager to see the newfound city for themselves. At the festival, Romulus gave a signal by "rising and folding his cloak and then throwing it round him again," at which the Romans grabbed the Sabine women and fought off the Sabine men. In total, thirty Sabine women were abducted by the Romans at the festival. All of the women abducted at the festival were said to have been virgins except for one married woman, Hersilia, who would later become Romulus' wife and be the one to intervene and stop the ensuing war between the Romans and the Sabines. The indignant abductees were soon implored by Romulus to accept the Roman men as their new husbands.

Historical Analysis

The motivation behind the abduction of the Sabine women is contested among ancient sources. Livy writes that Rome's motivation for abducting the Sabine women was solely to increase the cities population and claims that no direct sexual assault took place during the abduction. Livy says that Romulus offered the Sabine women free choice as well as civic and property rights. According to Livy, Romulus spoke to them each in person, declaring "that it was all owing to the pride of their parents in denying right of intermarriage to their neighbours. They would live in honourable wedlock, and share all their property and civil rights, and —dearest of all to human nature-would be the mothers of freemen." Scholars like Dionysius of Halicarnassus argue that it was an attempt to secure an alliance with the Sabine's through the women's newly founded relationships with Roman men. Livy's account is reinforced in some ways through the works of Cicero. In Cicero's work De re publica, he reiterates Livy's view that the plan to abduct the Sabine women at the festival was done in order "to strengthen the new state" and "safeguard the resources of his kingdom and people." Unlike Livy, Cicero, and Dionysius, Ovid looks at the abduction of the Sabine as an avenue for the men of Rome to fulfill their sexual desires rather than an attempt at taking wives to produce children for the city. While he does make note of the issue surrounding Rome's lack of women, he does not make it out to be a factor in the planning of the abduction.

Nicolas Poussin[edit]

Nicolas Poussin produced two major versions of this subject. His initial version was entitled the Abduction of the Sabine Women and was most likely completed around 1633-1634. The painting depicts Romulus giving the signal to the Romans for the abduction. According to the Met, the subject matter of Poussin's work allowed him to highlight his understanding of pose and gesture as well as his knowledge of Roman architecture. This version of the painting currently resides at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Poussin's second version, entitled the Rape of the Sabine women, is essentially a recreation of his original work and was likely completed around 1637-1638. The architectural setting of this work is more developed then the original. This painting currently resides in the Louvre Museum in Paris. According to the Louvre, painting multiple version of one subject was not uncommon throughout Poussin's career.

Peter Paul Rubens[edit]

Main article: The Rape of the Sabine Women (Rubens)

Peter Paul Rubens painted his version of the Rape of Sabine women around 1635–40. It now resides in the National Gallery, London. The painting depicts the moment Romulus gave the signal for the Romans to abduct the Sabine women. Ruben emphasizes the violence of the abduction and sexualizes it by depicting women with exposed breasts and a solider lifting up a woman's skirt.

Jacques Stella

Jacques Stella painted a version of the Rape of the Sabine Women entitled The Rape of the Sabines in the mid 17th Century. Stella's depiction of the scene is said to have so closely resembled Nicholas Poussin's works that following his death his version was mistaken for a Poussin. This work now resides at Princeton University's Art Museum.

The Rape of the Sabine Women by Peter Paul Ruben.

Johann Heinrich Schönfeld

Johann Heinrich Schönfeld painted a version of this subject entitled The Rape of the Sabine Women in the late 1630s. His work now resides at the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.

Jacques-Louis David[edit]

The Intervention of the Sabine Women (1799).

Jacques-Louis David painted the other end of the story, when the women intervene to reconcile the warring parties. The Sabine Women Enforcing Peace by Running Between the Combatants (also known as The Intervention of the Sabine Women) was completed in 1799. It is in the Louvre Museum.

David had worked on it from 1796, when France was at war with other European nations, after a period of civil conflict culminating in the Reign of Terror and the Thermidorian Reaction, during which David himself had been imprisoned as a supporter of Robespierre. After David's estranged wife visited him in jail, he conceived the idea of telling the story, to honor his wife, with the theme being love prevailing over conflict. The painting was also seen as a plea for the French people to reconcile their differences after the bloodshed of the French revolution.

The painting depicts Romulus's wife Hersilia — the daughter of Titus Tatius, leader of the Sabines — rushing between her husband and her father and placing her babies between them. A vigorous Romulus prepares to strike a half-retreating Tatius with his spear, but hesitates. Other soldiers are already sheathing their swords.