The Death of Decius Mus

The Roman General Decius Mus sacrifices himself in a battle with the Latins, the fall of a secular saint. The clouds open and sunlight streams down on the fallen man. His face is transfigured, almost extatic — an expression recognizable in the Laocoon, or the Extasy of St. Theresa. The "exemplum doloris" — the vision of heroic pain.