The Story
Roman Charity (Latin: Caritas Romana; Italian: Carità Romana) or Cimon and Pero is an ancient Greek and Roman exemplary story (exemplum) of filial piety (pietas) in which a woman secretly breastfeeds her father or mother, incarcerated and supposedly sentenced to death by starvation. Once caught, the loving devotion shown so moves the authorities that she is forgiven and the parent is typically freed.
The father in the story is often named Cimon (Ancient Greek: Κίμων, Kímōn) and the daughter Pero, although other versions name the father Mycon (Μύκον, Mýkon). First attested in surviving Roman sources, it became a common theme in Early Modern period of Western European art, particularly the Baroque period.
Executed in Oil on canvas, measuring 197.5 × 237.5 cm (77 3/4 × 93 1/2 in.); Framed: 231.1 × 271.8 × 7.6 cm (91 × 107 × 3 in.), the surface rewards close looking. Abraham Janssens builds the composition through layered glazes and a tightly controlled palette, letting cool shadows recede so that the warm, lit passages step forward. The brushwork shifts from the precise to the almost dissolved — a hallmark of mature Baroque practice.
“A silence so complete it becomes its own witness.”
