Ceres sucht ir Tochter

Title

Ceres sucht ir Tochter

Period

1550-1600;

Geographic

Ancient Greece

Description

This engraving illustrates the goddess Ceres looking for her daughter, Proserpina, who had been abducted by Pluto, the god of the Underworld. Ceres becomes tired and thirsty from looking for her daughter, so she finds an old hut with a roof made of straw and asks the host for some hospitality. The host is an elderly woman who obliges the goddess and provides her with a drink. While Ceres is at this hut, a young, foul-mouthed boy named Stellio taunted the goddess and called her greedy. The goddess was taken aback by this rude child, and she threw her drink onto him which transformed him into a lizard. The young boy is depicted on the left side of the image with the lower half of his body already transformed into a lizard.

Image Creator

Virgil Solis (Engraver)

Type

Text

Woodcut Engraving

Identifier

mta:21882

Language

ger

Source Name

P. Ouidij Nasonis, deß Sinnreichen und hochverstendigen Poeten, Metamorphoses oder Verwandlung, mit schönen figuren gezieret, auch kurzen Argumenten und außlegungen erkläret, und in Teutsche Reymen gebracht, durch Johann Spreng von Augspurg [Publius Ovidius Naso, the Ingenious and Highly Understandable Poet, Metamorphoses or Transformations, Adorned with Beautiful Images, and also descriptions of Short Arguments and Explanations, Brought into German Rhymes by Johann Spreng of Augsburg]

Parent Collection

1564 Frankfurt Spreng

Image

mta_21882_OBJ.jpg

Collection

Ovid's Metamorphoses

Subject

Gods

Goddesses

Ceres

Proserpina

Pluto

Hubris

Abduction

Roman Mythology

Greek Mythology