Explore the Description of this artwork.
The sketch was titled The Captive King and it shows the French nobleman Guy de Lusignan held prisoner by Saladin. Lusignan had fought Saladin on 4 July 1187 and was taken prisoner following his army's defeat. It is said that the relics from the true cross were also lost during this battle. Lusignan, who came from near Poitiers in France, had become the King of Jerusalem as a result of his marriage to Sibylla of Jerusalem. Eventually, Lusignan was released by Saladin and went on to rule Cyprus. The sketch by Joseph Wright contains annotations by his friend Peter Perez Burdett. Wright had taken lessons from Burdett in perspective and consulted him over the construction of his paintings.
Sibylla of Jerusalem Peter Perez Burdett Poitiers Saladin relics from the true cross Guy de Lusignan