Plate 1: Ferdinand as Mars, standing on a pedestal; from Guillielmus Becanus's 'Serenissimi Principis Ferdinandi, Hispaniarum Infantis...'
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet (Trimmed): 15 3/8 × 11 7/8 in. (39.1 × 30.2 cm)
Classification
Prints|Prints-Fete|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1951
Accession Number
51.501.7405
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold *Plate 1: Ferdinand Mars, standing on a pedestal*, an exquisite 1636 engraving from Guillielmus Becanus's publication *Serenissimi Principisinandi, Hispani Infantis*. This print glorifies Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of—a brilliant military leader and Habsburg prince—as the Roman god of war, Mars. Poised triumphantly atop a amid allegorical female nudes symbolizing victory and valor, it captures the era's fervor during the Thirty Years', when Ferdinand's triumphs, like the 1634 Battle of Nördlingen, elevated him to heroic status. Such imagery served as potent propaganda, blending classica...