Mercury and Argus

Wtewael, Joachim Anthonisz (1566-1638) (style copy of)

Item type:

drawing

Date of creation:

17th century

Height:

17.8 cm  (7 in.)

Width:

25.0 cm  (9 13/16 in.)

Technique / Medium:

black chalk and gray wash

Place of creation:

Nederland

Description

Mercury, disguised as a shepherd, meets Argus in a forest. Argus is watching over Io, who has been changed into a heifer. Mercury is seated on a large stone playing a shepherd's flute or pipe in an attempt to put Argus to sleep. Mercury's caduceus leans against the rock between his legs and a sword lies at the base of the rock behind his right foot. A flock of sheep accompanies him on his right. Argus lounges on the ground leaning his back on a tree trunk as the heifer stands next to him at his right. He holds a long stick or prod in his right hand, and his left forearm rests on a barrel next to the tree, while his dog lies on the ground to his left.

Iconclass

97CC64
Mercury lulls Argus into sleep by making music

Instruments [MIMO Code] (notes)

End-blown flute [3940] (shepherd's pipe)

RIdIM images

Image URLs

image link 1

Bibliographic references

Eitner, Lorenz, Betsy Geraghty Fryberger, Carol Margot Osborne, and Dwight C. Miller. Stanford University Museum of Art, the Drawing Collection (Stanford CA: Stanford University Museum of Art; Seattle: Distributed by University of Washington Press, 1993) 308, no. 48. ISBN: 9780937031025.

RIdIM record id

5457