Samson Shattering the Pillars of the Temple, Maarten van Heemskerck, c. 1550 - c. 1560 – (Maerten Van Heemskerck) ◄ prijašnji Sljedeći ►

Umjetnik: Maerten Van Heemskerck

Datum: 1560

Veličina: 46 x 16 cm

Tehnika: Oil On Panel

This painting and three others in the collection of the Rijksmuseum (SK-A-3512, SK-A-3513 and SK-A-3514) belong to a set of twelve small grisaille panels, four of which are currently in the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven, with a further two in the Allen Memorial Art Museum in Oberlin, and two more which used to be in the Wetzlar Collection in Amsterdam.11 The complete set consists of three categories: four panels depict ancient Greek gods: Saturn (fig. a), Pluto (fig. b), Neptune (SK-A-3514) and Jupiter (fig. c). Four panels show episodes from the life of Hercules: Hercules Slaying the Hydra (fig. d), Hercules and Antaeus (fig. e), Hercules Destroying the Centaur Nessus (SK-A-3513) and Hercules Carrying the Column of Heaven (fig. f). The remaining four depict scenes from the life of Samson: Samson Rending the Lion (SK-A-3512), Samson Conquering the Philistines (fig. g), Samson Carrying the Gate of Gaza (fig. h) and Samson Destroying the Temple (SK-A-3511). Until the twelve panels were auctioned at Christie’s in London in 1946 as the Twelve Labours of Hercules by Martin van Heemskerck, the complete series was in the collection of Lord Kinnaird at Rossie Priory in Scotland. In 2007, the two paintings formerly in the Wetzlar collection were thoroughly examined with the four from the Rijksmuseum.12 In 2008, photographs of the fronts and backs of the two panels in Oberlin were kindly provided by the Allen Memorial Art Museum.13 In 2008, regular, ultraviolet and X-ray photographs of the fronts and backs of the four panels in New Haven were kindly provided by the Yale University Art Gallery.14 Dendrochronological data were collected for all twelve panels.15 Samson Destroying the Temple (SK-A-3511) depicts Samson’s last deed when, blinded and held prisoner by the Philistines, he used his last powers to destroy the Temple, killing the Philistines and himself (Judges 16:28-31). According to the story, Samson stood between two pillars and pushed them apart, something Heemskerck adhered to in his design for an engraving executed by Philips Galle.16 Probably due to the vertical format of the Rijksmuseum panel, Heemskerck depicted Samson with both hands around one pillar and included one desperate face on the left, so as to leave no doubt about the subject matter. Samson Rending the Lion (SK-A-3512) depicts Samson’s first deed (Judges 14:5-7): the young Samson encountered an aggressive lion on his way to his Philistine bride and tore the beast apart with his bare hands. Heemskerck indeed painted Samson as a young man: of the four panels devoted to him, this is the only one in which he is beardless. In the background Heemskerck, following the tale, included Samson’s oblivious parents. In Hercules Destroying the Centaur Nessus (SK-A-3513) Heemskerck depicted Hercules killing Nessus with his club. Whereas the story relates that the hero shot his poisoned arrow from the shore, many examples exist in the pictorial tradition of Hercules attacking the beast with his club. Heemskerck probably opted to show Hercules clubbing the centaur because this would better suit the vertical format of the panel. In Neptune with a Seahorse (SK-A-3514) he painted the ancient Greek god of the sea standing over a seahorse. In his right hand Neptune is holding a trident, his traditional attribute. The format, number and monumental treatment of the subject matter of the twelve panels are reminiscent of ancient Hercules sarcophagi, especially the famous sarcophagus from the 3rd century AD with the twelve labours of Hercules in the Palazzo Torlonia.17 The Torlonia sarcophagus, which stood in the house of Cardinal Savelli in Rome in the 16th century, is known to have been sketched by many artists, and was probably seen by Heemskerck as well.18 The monochrome grisaille technique Heemskerck used was without doubt meant to create the illusion of three-dimensional statues. Interestingly, of the four Hercules panels in Heemskerck’s series, only one, Hercules Slaying the Hydra (fig. d) depicts one of the twelve labours. For some of the subject matter then, as Harrison pointed out, Heemskerck might have studied contemporary Italian prints, especially the 1526 engravings of Deities in Niches by Jacobo Caraglio after Rosso Fiorentino.19 Indeed, as regards Heemskerck’s choice of attributes, Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto generally bear similarities to this series.20 More specifically, the composition of Rosso’s Saturn, and the way in which his Jupiter is riding on his eagle, are particularly close to Heemskerck’s corresponding gods. This series is a rare example in the visual arts of a combination of ancient Greek gods and episodes from the lives of Hercules and Samson. During the 16th century, artists are known to have linked the ancient gods with Hercules, as well as Hercules with Samson, but not all three.21 As for the subject matter, Heemskerck interestingly did not opt for the obvious similarities between Hercules and Samson, namely their ../..