important works of the second phase of his career, all painted for the republican officialdom. Those of the first phase are majestic, erudite and typically romantic works. Those of the second, except for Tiradentes Esquartejado, which is a piece of harsh realism, are typical allegories of eclectic and sentimental Pompier art. Stylistically, the set of his historical paintings reflects the transformations of the dominant trends in the academic universe of his time. In his career as a historical painter, Américo always sparked heated controversies, being idolized by some and execrated by others. Biblical paintings and other themes Despite being best known for his civic paintings, these constitute but a fraction of Américo's complete work. When writing in 1864 for the painter Victor Meirelles, Américo stated that it was the biblical theme, especially the Old Testament, that most attracted him: "My nature is different. I don't think I bend easily to the passing demands of the customs of each age... my passion, only sacred history satisfies it." Américo devoted most of the second phase of his career to this genre, also highly regarded by academics, considered a branch of historical painting, starting in the 1880s. Despite their religious theme, biblical paintings typified their bourgeois romanticism by decorative emphasis and for the love for exoticism. In addition to being a personal preference, they were a reflection of a change in context and catered to the taste of a new, bourgeois and sentimental audience, which was not a market for traditional historical works, but began to appreciate images that were more related to their own reality or were consumables without further complications. Despite preferring the biblical themes as inspiration, Américo did not fail to penetrate other popular areas at the time, bringing literary and medievalist themes to the canvases as well. In part, this shift in general preferences towards the prosaic and accessible were due to the rise of realistic aesthetics, progressively incorporated by academics at the end of the 19th century, and the popularization of photography, which painters such as Pedro Américo began to make use of as a painting aid. In this context, academic painting continued to be appreciated by the bourgeoisie, which did not despise either the prestige aura with which it was still covered, nor the high technical quality of its production. Ivan Coelho de Sá noted that: For this audience, Pedro Américo left a significant production, although little