Chriemhild throwing herself on the body of Siegfried, assassinated by Hagen

A complicated tale of class, conquest, betrayal and

deceit, chapter 17 of the Nibelungenlied describes

how one of King Gunther’s vassals, Hagen von Tronje, dishonourably kills Siegfried by throwing a javelin at the mark on his jacket which indicates the one place where he is not invincible. The movement of the figures on either side create a swirling effect in Fuseli’s drawing, heightened by the curved line of Siegfried’s shield. Chriemhild goes on to avenge his death and the loss of her treasure by imprisoning Hagen, to whom she presents the decapitated head of her brother Gunther. She in turn meets a gruesome death.

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