London's National Gallery has added an important Angelica Kauffman history painting to its collection, bringing the artist's work into a UK national collection for the first time in nearly 200 years. The newly acquired piece, Achilles discovered among the Daughters of Lycomedes (1787-88), is now on display at the museum.
The painting presents a vivid mythological moment from the Trojan War, showing Achilles disguised among the daughters of Lycomedes on the island of Skyros. Kauffman captures the instant his identity is revealed, combining classical composition with theatrical architecture and carefully arranged symbolic details.
The work is an oil study, or modello, created as a preparatory version for a larger 1789 painting now held by the Scientific-Research Museum of the Academy of Arts of Russia in St. Petersburg. At nearly four feet square, the study is unusually large and highly detailed for its type. It was commissioned by Catherine the Great as a companion to another painting in the Russian empress's collection.
The acquisition came through a gift from collectors Richard and Luba Barrett, who also donated two additional works by Swiss artists to the National Gallery. Museum director Gabriele Finaldi described the donation as a meaningful addition to the institution's holdings, highlighting Kauffman's place in the gallery's current collection.
This acquisition strengthens the visibility of a pioneering artist and expands public access to a key example of 18th-century history painting. It may also encourage deeper appreciation of women's contributions to the future of museum collections and art history.