<P> An oil on canvas painting measuring 1.15 m × 1.57 m (45 × 62 in), Las Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho is a "landmark painting" depicting the persecution of Christians in Ancient Rome . Described as a masterpiece remarkable in the aspects of quality, composition, and historical context, it portrays two scantily clothed Christian female slaves being mocked by a group of boorish Roman male onlookers . One of the women is posed seated naked at the foreground of the painting with her "head bowed in misery". The semi-nude women have been stripped not only of their garments but also of their dignity . Created in the academic style of Europe, the unfortunate women in the artwork are considered by some indigenous Filipinos as virgins "being led out, stolen from, and ridiculed". The women are young virgins cornered by a mob of "sexually hungry" Roman men . One of the men has his hand over one semi-naked female whose eyes are "looking up to heaven" asking and begging for "help that never comes". </P> <P> Together with Juan Luna's Spoliarium, Hidalgo's Las Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho presents "human spoliage and spoils", with human spoilage more related to Luna's Spoliarium and the human spoils closer to Hidalgo's Las Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populacho . Such themes were presented to the "juries and audiences" of the Madrid exposition in order to satisfy the "erudition - quotient" essential to the conservative scholarly Neoclassicism of Hidalgo and Luna while they were spending time in Europe . </P> <P> Hidalgo's works, together with Juan Luna's, are part of the Hall of Masters in the National Museum of Fine Arts of the National Museum of the Philippines . By winning medals at the Madrid Exposition, both Hidalgo and Juan Luna are the first "international" Filipino painters . It was regardless who won the first or the second prize because these awards were primarily "gauges of quality" of the artwork . Hidalgo is regarded as a Philippine hero for his participation in acting his role as a correspondent for the La Independencia newspaper . </P> <P> After winning at the Exposition in Madrid, a small group of Filipino expatriates and members of the Philippine reform movement held a victory celebration . As a tribute to the medalists, Pedro Paterno hosted a banquet not only to honor Hidalgo and Luna but also with the purpose of making the Philippines better known among the politicians and journalists of Madrid with the help of the El Imparcial, a liberal Spanish newspaper . During the party, José Rizal gave a speech regarding the achievement of Hidalgo and Luna as a proof that the talents of Filipino artists equaled those of the Spaniards . In relation to such evidence, Rizal questioned the inequality in political rights and freedom between Filipinos and Spaniards . Graciano Lopez - Jaena in turn orated that Hidalgo and Luna were propaganda painters who exposed the "lamentable conditions" of the Philippines while under the tutelage of the Spaniards . </P>

The christian virgins being exposed to the populace