During the Renaissance, mankind took a new look at the world and nature. His curiosity was evident even in the private rooms of wealthy collectors! Rudolph II of Habsburg, who built a zoological garden, himself showed great interest in flora and fauna. Savery probably also served as a naturalist to the Emperor, drawing inspiration from botanical sources, living specimens and the works of earlier artists.
Flowers, by their ephemeral nature, act as a “memento mori”. This aspect is echoed in a verse from the Book of Job: "Man blooms like a flower then fades, and vanishes like a shadow."
Detail 1 : The insects depicted have symbolic meaning. The butterfly's lightness refers to the soul, and its metamorphosis to immortality. The fly, with its sterile agitation, has a negative connotation. The opposite of the butterfly, it forms part of the representation of the struggle between good and evil.
Detail 2 : Beyond the allusion to how brief life is, these bouquets can have a symbolic dimension that scholars love to decipher. As such, the rose evokes love or the Passion of Christ, the carnation is a symbol of redemption while the columbine suggests melancholy.
Inv. P 1036
During the Renaissance, mankind took a new look at the world and nature. His curiosity was evident even in the private rooms of wealthy collectors! Rudolph II of Habsburg, who built a zoological garden, himself showed great interest in flora and fauna. Savery probably also served as a naturalist to the Emperor, drawing inspiration from botanical sources, living specimens and the works of earlier artists.
Flowers, by their ephemeral nature, act as a “memento mori”. This aspect is echoed in a verse from the Book of Job: "Man blooms like a flower then fades, and vanishes like a shadow."
Detail 1 : The insects depicted have symbolic meaning. The butterfly's lightness refers to the soul, and its metamorphosis to immortality. The fly, with its sterile agitation, has a negative connotation. The opposite of the butterfly, it forms part of the representation of the struggle between good and evil.
Detail 2 : Beyond the allusion to how brief life is, these bouquets can have a symbolic dimension that scholars love to decipher. As such, the rose evokes love or the Passion of Christ, the carnation is a symbol of redemption while the columbine suggests melancholy.
Inv. P 1036
