On-line gallery
- Reference number
- P01547
- Author
- Jordaens, Jacob (Flemish)
- Title
- Offering to Ceres
- Chronology
- Ca. 1619
- Technique
- Support
- Measures
- 165 cm x 112 cm
- School
- Theme
- Shown
- Yes
- Entrance
- COLECCION REAL
- Procedence
- Royal Collection
Crowned with wheat, as goddess of
the Earth, Ceres holds a horn
filled with fruit, a symbol of the
abundance and fertility that
characterizes her. She receives
homage from a group of peasants,
who bear an offering of the
products the receive from the earth
they farm. This goddess taught
humans to use the plow and to farm,
to which the painter alludes by
including oxen in the work.
Ceres also embodies the changing
seasons, that is, the cycle of
life, which is represented here by
the figures of different ages that
surround the goddess: children,
youth, adults and the aged. Even
the beginning of new life is
reflected in the goddess's
pregnancy.
This painting was made at the
beginning of Jordaens' artistic
maturity and is notable for its
intense colors, the perfect
assimilation of space, and the
energetic rendering characteristic
of his work during his last years.
His preference of popular, almost
vulgar types is very frequent
throughout his production and is in
keeping with the tradition of some
Flemish artists, such as
Brueghel.
This work was first documented in
1772 at the Royal Palace, when it
was listed as coming from the
Zarzuela Palace.
Location on the map
