Arkivism
Adulthood
Public domain

Adulthood

Hieronymus Wierix · 1563 - 1584 · engraving; paper

From the collection of Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

Allegory of adulthood, corresponding to the four times of day and the four seasons. On the triumphal chariot of evening (Vesper) sit Discord (Discordia), Avarice (Avaritia), and Sickness (Aegritudo), accompanied by two old men. The chariot is drawn by two horses, ridden by Fraud (Fraus) and Indifference (Cura). The procession is led by a man with bandages around his head. He is missing a foot and leans on a knee crutch and an axillary crutch. He carries a banner depicting the signs of the zodiac, Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius, and Mourning (Luctus) on horseback. In the margin, a four-line inscription in two columns in Latin.

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam’s own description
Subjects
printIndifferencechariot, triumphal carGreed, Covetousness, Cupidity'Cupidità' (Ripa)Disagreement, Discord'Discordia' (Ripa)
Credit lineVolwassenheid. 1563 - 1584. Hieronymus Wierix. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Public domain.
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