Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Details competition

Tom Lubbock
Saturday 03 July 1999 23:02 BST
Comments

In which painting by which painter can you find this scrawl?

Answers on a postcard, to arrive by Friday 9 July: DETAILS 440, IoS, 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5DL. Three winners will each receive a bottle of champagne

Details 438 came from Lawrence Alma-Tadema's Phidias Showing the Frieze of the Parthenon to his Friends (1868). The picture combines several of the artist's special interests: the ancient world caught off-duty, accurate archeological reconstruction, interestingly angled views. The scene is set on scaffolding, offering below-floor perspectives. The marbles are authentically coloured. And - with the great sculptor acting nobly modest - here's a founding monument of Western civilisation seen at its private view. There's just one touch of inauthenticity. It's a private view, but some of the invited are clearly looking at the work. The picture is in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

The first three correct entries came from: P Cousins, St Helens; I Jones, Helsby; and S Strong, Gloucestershire.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in