Circe Punishes Glaucus by Turning Scylla into a Monster

Creator Name

Eglon van der Neer;
Eglon van der Neer

Cultural Context

Date

1695

Source

Rijksmuseum

About the Work

Rijksmuseum Object Description

The unsightly, but good-natured sea god Glaucus was in love with Scylla, but this was unrequited. To win her over, he sought the help of the sorceress Circe. This was a mistake, for Circe was herself in love with him. In a fit of rage, she changed poor Scylla into a monster. Van der Neer set the story from Ovid’s Metamorphoses in sinister surroundings. Gesturing theatrically, the sorceress performs her vengeful deed.

De onooglijke, maar goedaardige zeegod Glaucus was ongelukkig verliefd op Scylla. Om haar voor zich te winnen, vroeg hij de tovenares Circe om hulp. Een fout, want Circe bleek verliefd op hem. Woedend veranderde zij de arme Scylla in een monster. Van der Neer plaatste het verhaal uit Ovidius’ ...

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Title

Circe Punishes Glaucus by Turning Scylla into a Monster

Creator

Eglon van der Neer, schilder, painter;
Eglon van der Neer, schilder, painter

Worktype

painting; schilderij

Cultural Context

Material

doek; canvas; oil paint (paint); olieverf

Dimensions

depth 3.8 cm;
height 64 cm x width 53.3 cm;
buitenmaat: diepte 3,8 cm (drager incl. SK-L-4831);
drager: hoogte 64 cm x breedte 53,3 cm

Technique

Language

Date

1695

Provenance

Inv.; …; sale, the Earl of Yarborough et al. [section Captain John Alexander Maylin Vipan, 1849-1939, Stibbington Hall, Stibbington, Cambridgeshire], London (Sotheby’s), 28 June 1939, no. 150, £ 5.0.0, to the dealer Siegfried Berendt, London;{Copy RKD.}…; sale, Stockholm (AB Stockholms Auktionsverkets), 16 April 1985 sqq., no. 568, as Willem van Mieris, SEK 20,000;{Note RMA.}…; anonymous sale [section 'Various Properties'], London (Christie’s), 12 december 1986, no. 53, £ 6,000, to Artemis Fine Arts Services, for the dealer Nicholas Stogdon, New York;{Note RMA.} from whom, fl. 280,000, to the museum, with support from the bequest of G.H. Sant, Amsterdam, 1990; Purchased with the support of the Vereniging Rembrandt, with additional funding from the Prins Bernhard Fonds, the Rijksmuseum-Stichting, the G.H. Sant Bequest and the ministerie van WVC; Aankoop met steun van de Vereniging Rembrandt, mede dankzij het Prins Bernhard Fonds, de Rijksmuseum-Stichting, het legaat G.H. Sant en het Ministerie van WVC

Style Period

Rights

Public domain

Inscription

Location

Source

Rijksmuseum

Subjects

Scylla changed into a sea-monster: Circe, to whom Glaucus has applied for aid in his love suit, changes Scylla the sea-nymph into a sea-monster (Ovid, Metamorphoses XIV 59)

Topic

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