Atlas supporting the Heavens
Copyright
Work in the public domain
Image: Courtauld
Image: Courtauld
Maker
1577-1640
Title
Atlas supporting the Heavens
Date of Production
c. 1636
Medium
oil on panel
Dimensions
Height: 25.1 cm (panel)
Width: 16.6 cm (panel)
Width: 16.6 cm (panel)
Object Number
P.1978.PG.381
Mode of Acquisition
Count Antoine Seilern, bequest, 1978
Credit
Courtauld Gallery, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)
Label Text
In 1636, King Philip IV of Spain asked Rubens to design the decoration of his new hunting lodge outside Madrid, the Torre de la Parada. These lively sketches, representing mythological scenes, are two of 50 preparatory studies made for this commission. One shows Atlas, condemned by the gods to hold the sky on his shoulders for trying to overthrow them. The other depicts the Greek warrior Hercules killing the hydra, a water monster with many heads.
Provenance
Princes Gate Bequest 1978
Exhibition History
CORPUS: The Body Unbound, Courtauld Gallery, London, 16/06/2017-16/07/2017
Peter Paul Rubens - A Touch of Brilliance, Courtauld Gallery, London, 20/09/2003-08/02/2004
Rubens - Paintings, Drawings and Prints in the Princes Gate
Collection, Courtauld Gallery, London, 06/10/1988-08/01/1989
Collection, Courtauld Gallery, London, 06/10/1988-08/01/1989
Literature
Peter Paul Rubens - A Touch of Brilliance, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 2003-2004
cat. no. 57
Fig. p. pl. 57
cat. no. 57
Fig. p. pl. 57
Rubens - Paintings, Drawings and Prints in the Princes Gate
Collection, Courtauld Gallery, London, 1988-1989
cat. no. 19
no. 19 and pp. 2, 6 under no. 2, 16
Fig. p. p. 16
cat. no. 19
no. 19 and pp. 2, 6 under no. 2, 16
Fig. p. p. 16
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