Artemisia Receiving Mausolus' Ashes (also known as Sophonisba Receiving the Poisoned Cup) is a painting by the Dutch

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 master Rembrandt. It is housed in the Museo del Prado

Museo del Prado

The Museo del Prado is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and unquestionably the best single collection of...

 of Madrid

Madrid

Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...

, Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

. It is signed "REMBRANDT F: 1634".

The subject of the picture is still unclear. It portrays a young woman, variously identified as Sophonisba

Sophonisba

Sophonisba was a Carthaginian noblewoman who lived during the Second Punic War, and the daughter of Hasdrubal Gisco Gisgonis...

 or Artemisia

Artemisia

- Botany :* Artemisia , a genus of plants including the sagebrush and wormwood- Geography :* Artemisia Geyser in Yellowstone National Park* Artemissia, Messinia, a Greek village west of Taygetus mountain in the Peloponnese...

, or a generic queen due to her jewels and rich garments, receiving a cup from a maiden. The cup would contain the ashes of Artemisia's husband, King Mausolus

Mausolus

Mausolus was ruler of Caria . He took part in the revolt against Artaxerxes Mnemon , conquered a great part of Lycia, Ionia and several Greek islands and cooperated with the Rhodians in the Social War against Athens...

, or, in the case of Sophonisba, the poison which killed her.

For the woman, Rembrandt probably used his wife Saskia as model.