The Family of Darius Before AlexanderIl Sodoma

This fresco (1516–19) shows Alexander standing in armor before a tent as Darius III’s captured family gathers around him. The kneeling queen mother Sisygambis reaches toward Alexander, having mistaken him for his general Hephaestion at right. The controlled gestures and ordered ranks of figures articulate Renaissance ideals of mercy and virtus (classical moral excellence) in a victorious ruler.