Death of Aegeus. A.M. 2767.

One of a group of drawings by British artist and book illustrator Edward Francis Burney, depicting scenes from Greek and Roman history and mythology. Aegeus, King of Athens, had a much-loved son, Theseus. The two agreed that Theseus would change the dark sails of his ship to white ones if he suceeded in slaying the Minotaur. However, Theseus forgot this promise to his father and on seeing his ship with dark sails, Aegeus believed his son dead and threw himself into the sea. The Aegean Sea is named after him. For other drawings relating to Theseus, see WAG 7683 and 7684.