Vercingetorix throws down his arms at the feet of Julius Caesar. Vercingetorix before Caesar, Lionel Royer, 1899

The painting depicts the surrender of the gallic chieftain after the battle of alesia (52 bc). The depiction of gauls with long hair and mustaches is also called into question today. The horse is a percheron, although at this time this breed was not in gaul. The rectangular shield also does not accord with the time when they were mostly oval. As well as this, the depiction of the soldiers in the 'lorica segmentata' armour is not accurate for the period - as standard issue legionary uniform were the 'lorica hamata' used in the late republican period. Object Type: painting. Genre: history painting. Date: 1899. Place of creation: France. Dimensions: height: 321 cm (10.5 ft) ; width: 482 cm (15.8 ft). Medium: oil on canvas. Depicted People: Vercingetorix, Julius Caesar. Collection: Musée Crozatier. Siege-alesia-vercingetorix-jules-cesar