This is the “Spoliarium” by Juan Novicio Luna, as masterpiece created in 1884.

It is one of the
prize possession of the Philippine National Museum today. This Neoclassical artwork earned Juan
Luna 3 gold medal in the Exposicion Nacional de Bellas Artes and recognition among the
connoisseurs and art critics. It was praise so much that even Jose Rizal, Philippine’s national hero,
prepared a speech for Juan Luna, addressing two things from his artwork, the glorification of
genius and the grandeur of his artistic skills. And it’s not a surprise why he called the artwork
“The Glorification of Genius.” Not only does it enticed the fewer with compelling imagery of
death, but it also sneaks in a historical nod to the Filipino History.

So much jump out of me when looking at this masterpiece, the transition of light, the movement of
every character, the chaotic scene depicted and the attention to detail Juan Luna gave to his
artworks. As the title suggestion, the scene depicts a Spoliarium or what’s happening in the
Spoliarium. A Spoliarium is a Latin word referring to the basement of the Roman Colosseum
where the fallen and dying gladiators who fight to the death for the entertainment of their Roman
oppressors are dumped and devoid of their worldly possessions. Luna depicts to us what is
happening after the gladiator’s fight and what happened to those who loses the battle.

The first thing that’ll catch your eyes is the dead body being dragged to the darkness, Your eyes
will wander around the dead body, you might next be looking at the woman crying alone or maybe
the old man looking at the dead body, then to the crowd of people behind the stairs, then on other
dead bodies being dragged away the finally, in the darkness where the dead fighters being drag to.
What strikes me the most in this painting is the subtle way Luna provides us with the political
comments about his motherland, the Philippines. Maybe that is the reason why Dr. Jose Rizal
footnoted in his speech that the Spoliarium,

“Embodied the essence of our social, moral and political life: humanity in the severe ordeal,
humanity unredeemed, reason, and idealism in open struggle with prejudice, fanaticism, and
injustice.”

What I notice when examining this artwork is the continuous separation of the darkness to the
other parts of the painting. The people on the stairway though they are above all other characters,
but they’re not really given any solid form as if they’re not important. As if they’re just a mere
background.