Schelte Adamsz Bolswert (c. 1586-1659)

Stormy Landscape with Philemon and Baucis

Antwerp, after 1630

Engraving

Paper: 502 x 665 mm; mount: 620 x 805 mm

Mythological Gods are notorious for their vengeful behaviour.

When a disguised Jupiter and Mercury visited Heart, only Philemon and Baucis welcomed them. Shocked by the hostility of other inhabitants, the gods flooded the landscape. Here the figures are overwhelmed by the storm, which fills the composition. The eagle and goat are emblems of Jupiter, who stands on the left. Next to him, Mercury, who wraps a protective arm around Philemon, is identifiable by his winged sandals and caduceus (staff entwined with snakes). Engraving after Rubens.

Purchased 1997 (No. 97.1).

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