seCtion 1 | Hunting gods, goddesses and Heroes in greco-roman Mythology

CAtAlogue

seCtion 1 Hunting gods, goddesses And Heroes in greCo-roMAn MytHology

“i am knowledgeable about woodland, and hunting wild animals ... ” (ovid, Metamorphoses, bk Vii:661–758, the infidelities of Cephalus and procris. trans. A. s. kline)

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lÉon dAVent (active in fontainebleau, 1540–1556) After luCA penni (florence, 1500/1504 – paris, 1557) or frAnCesCo priMAtiCCio (bologna, 1504/1505 – fontainebleau, 1570) Adonis Slaying the Calydonian Wild Boar

1547 engraving on paper, 310 × 394 mm imprint i/ii purchased from the esterházy collection, 1871 inv. no. 52262 Museum of fine Arts, Collection of prints and drawings

in the 1520s, king francis i of france rebuilt his castle in fontainebleau in the renaissance style. He commissioned the finest italian artists to decorate the interiors. the masters working under the supervision of rosso fiorentino (giovanni battista di Jacopo rosso) and francesco primaticcio of bologna created a uniquely rich ensemble of murals, stuccos, intarsias, and tapestries over several decades. it was not only the luxurious decoration of the rooms that proclaimed the greatness of the ruler: the most famous compositions in the castle soon became widely known via printed reproductions. However, the sheets of the fontainebleau engravers are rarely exact reproductions of the murals, as they often used sketches that ultimately did not become paintings. Although léon davent made his engravings almost exclusively after primaticcio ’ s frescos, there is no known mural similar to this sheet, which relates the mythological story of Adonis and the Calydonian wild boar. As, over time, the engravings in fontainebleau became less and less limited to the works of local painters, we cannot be sure whether the composition was even part of the castle ’ s decorative programme.

ZoltÁn kÁrpÁti

literAture: Zerner 1969, no. ld.77; Aldovini in Paris 2004, 276–77.

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frenCH sCulptor (?) Venus and Adonis

mid-16th century Marble, 32.5 × 45 cm transferred from the Museum of Applied Arts, 1950 inv. no. 51.926 Museum of fine Arts, sculpture Collection

the marble relief depicts a tragic story from ancient mythology. Venus and her lover, the handsome but mortal Adonis, went hunting together, but the goddess of love, however, warned the young man against any reckless show of strength: “neither youth nor beauty, nor the charms that affect Venus, affect lions or bristling boars or the eyes and minds of other wild creatures ” (ovid, Metamorphoses). the carving shows Venus, surrounded by nymphs, hounds and putti, pleading with Adonis not to set out on his fatal wild boar hunt. Although the creator of the relief is unknown, due to its stylistic features – an emphatically vertical composition, crowded with elongated figures in graceful poses – it shows close affinity with the works of artists of the french fontainebleau school, who drew inspiration from the italian late renaissance. An analogy is the stucco decoration of the former bedroom (converted in the eighteenth century into a royal staircase) of the duchess of Étampes in the chateau of fontainebleau near paris, designed by francesco primaticcio (1504–1570) in the 1540s. the budapest work is probably based on a printed or painted prototype.

MÁrton tótH

literAture: balogh 1969, 120, fig. 62; balogh 1975, vol. i, 197, cat. no. 273.

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giorgio gHisi (Mantua, 1520 – Mantua, 1582) After luCA penni (florence, 1500/1504 – paris, 1557) Allegory of Hunting

1556 engraving on paper, 364 × 254 mm imprint ii/V purchased from the esterházy collection, 1871 inv. no. 5440 Museum of fine Arts, Collection of prints and drawings

giorgio ghisi, an engraver from Mantua, had an unparalleled career. He was employed by some of the greatest publishers of prints in europe. He later travelled to france, where he made engravings after drawings of the italian masters luca penni and francesco primaticcio, who were working on the decoration of the Chateau of fontainebleau. After a decade, he returned to Mantua, where he served the gonzaga familyascuratoroftheducalcollectionofjewelleryandpreciousmetalsuntilhisdeath. Although he made most of his works after Michelangelo and raphael, his finest engravings were inspired by drawings by luca penni. penni began his career in raphael’ s workshop in rome, before moving to france, where he earned his living mainly from his drawings for engravers in paris and fontainebleau. fontainebleau was popular for its depictions of hunting: its name originates from the legendary story of bleau, the hound who discovered the hidden spring in the forest, while diana, goddess of hunting, also appears frequently in the iconography of king francis i of france. ghisi and penni’ s collaborative engraving is also on hunting: the allegorical representation, however, does not depict a specific mythological story, so its characters could be identified with Venus and Adonis as much as with diana and orion.

ZoltÁn kÁrpÁti

literAture: boorsch, lewis, and lewis 1985, no. 21; bellini 1998, no. 27.

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nortHern itAliAn sCulptor Meleager

mid-16th century bronze, black lacquer patina, 42 × 17 × 13 cm purchased from the collection of istván ferenczy, 1914 inv. no. 5309 Museum of fine Arts, sculpture Collection

the small bronze depicts the ancient prince Meleager, slayer of the Calydonian wild boar, with his hound by his right foot. the composition follows a classical model: the lost original bronze version of the marble sculpture of the hero with his dog and the boar’ s head, held in the Museo pio Clementino in the Vatican, was made by the greek sculptor scopas (active in the mid-fourth century bCe). the marble sculpture had been known as one of the finest classical sculptures in rome since 1546, and an etching was made of it in 1555. the budapest piece copies the roman marble statue without the boar’ s head resting on the tree trunk and also without the end of the cape that flutters from Meleager’ s left arm, but it faithfully follows the figures ’ postures. the hunter’ s left arm also remains unfinished, a deliberate attempt by the sculptor to imitate the ancient prototype. A number of modern masters were inspired by this theme to cast small bronzes. A renaissance replica, which reproduces the antique marble in its entirety, but with the addition of Meleager’ s left forearm, is in the princely Collection of liechtenstein in Vienna, while an eighteenth-century piece from rome is now in the frick Collection in new york.

ZsófiA VArgyAs

literAture: balogh 1975, vol. i, cat. no. 180; blume in Frankfurt am Main 1985, cat. no. 107.

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bernAert de riJCkere (kortrijk, ca. 1535 – Antwerp, 1590) Diana and Actaeon

1562 oil on oak panel, 48 × 70.5 cm signed lower left, on the stone steps: 1562 / B.D. Rickere IV transferred from the apartment of the royal chamberlain in buda, 1848 inv. no. 378 Museum of fine Arts, Collection of old Master paintings

the story of diana and Actaeon is related by ovid in his Metamorphoses (iii; 138–253): while out hunting, the brave grandson of king Cadmus was led by fate “through parts unknown” to a sacred grove of nymphs, where the virgin goddess and her followers would gather to rest and bathe in a cave. in the left foreground of the painting, we see the young man spying on the naked diana, radiant with unearthly beauty, who in her fury throws spring water over Actaeon, casting a fateful curse upon him: she turns the hunter into a deer, and although he tries to escape, he is mauled to death by his own dogs. this myth, highly popular in the low Countries in the sixteenth century, contains elements of the erotic, the bizarre and the horrific, and appears in many depictions. bernaert de rijckere, known mainly for his allegorical and mythological paintings, wove the opening and closing scenes of the story into the bluish-green thicket of the grove as tiny motifs in the background of the painting, while the dramatic climax was executed on a larger scale in the foreground. besides faithfully depicting the narrative, he also placed great emphasis on the forest-mountain landscape and its inherent decorativeness: Actaeon’ s attire and the marble-white bodies gleam like jewels among the velvet green of the lush vegetation that dominates the painting.

georginA Csető

literAture: boon 1977, 109–31; urbach in Summary Catalogue 2000, 141.

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giuseppe CesAri (CAVAlier d’Arpino) (Arpino, 1568 – rome, 1640) Diana Transforming Actaeon into a Deer (Diana and Actaeon)

ca. 1603–1606 oil on copper, 50 × 69 cm signed below on the stone before Actaeon’ s foot: IOSEPH(US) ARPlNA(S) F(EClT) purchased from the esterházy collection, 1871 inv. no. 508 Museum of fine Arts, Collection of old Master paintings According to ovid’ s Metamorphoses (iii, 138–253), Actaeon, a young hunter, was led by destiny to the sacred forest of diana, where he caught a glimpse of the goddess of hunting bathing with her nymph attendants. in fury, diana turned the young man into a deer, who was eventually killed by his own dogs. Cesari captures the moment in the story when Actaeon’ s body is just beginning to undergo metamorphosis. the surprise and alarm of the female figures is mixed with playful curiosity. in this erotic mythological scene, complete with nudes painted in a variety of poses, Cesari, in keeping with public taste at the time, presents diana as a childlike yet sensual figure. in addition to his important roman frescos and altarpieces, giuseppe Cesari also painted a number of smaller cabinet paintings on mythological themes. the latter works were often painted on wood, copper or slate, contributing to the elegant, meticulously executed enamel-like finish of his paintings. the budapest work is an early example of this, a popular composition which survives in several versions: an earlier version is preserved in the louvre in paris, while a later variation, in a reverse composition, is in a private collection in rome. A copy made by the master’ s brother, bernardino, can be found in the collection of the galleria borghese in rome.

nikolettA koruHely

literAture: tátrai in Summary Catalogue 1991, 25; szigethi in Frankfurt am Main 1999, 248–49, cat. no. 71; tátrai in Madrid 2017, 110–11, cat. no. 35.

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pietro testA (lucca, 1612 – rome, 1650) Venus and Adonis

ca. 1632 etching on paper, 355 × 452 mm imprint i/iii purchased from the collection of istván delhaes, 1901 inv. no. 46553 Museum of fine Arts, Collection of prints and drawings

in the seventeenth century, a growing number of painters started to produce etchings. this method of printmaking encouraged a more spontaneous and flexible means of expression than copperplate engraving, enabling artists to work directly on the copperplate without the need for an engraver. the popularity of etching was partly due to the fact that it provided artists with a source of income when painting commissions were scarce. while most painters only occasionally turned to engraving, pietro testa has left a substantial body of etchings to posterity. the painter was employed in rome by Cassiano dal pozzo (1588–1657), the most famous antiquarian of the period, and he drew ancient monuments for his patron’ s Museo Cartaceo (paper Museum), which boasted 10,000 sheets. pozzo belonged to the upper echelons of the roman elite, and testa intended his etchings primarily for them. this work depicts the tragic love story between Venus, the goddess of love, and the mortal young hunter Adonis. testa created the dramatic impact of this carefully choreographed allegorical composition not through simple storytelling but by filling his work with intellectual references obvious to sophisticated audiences versed in classical literature.

ZoltÁn kÁrpÁti

literAture: Cropper 1988, no. 16; bellini and wallace 1990, 4506.025.s1.

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ferdinAndo tACCA (florence, 1619 – florence, 1686) Venus and Adonis

ca. 1650 bronze, brown lacquer patina, 44.5 × 26 × 26.5 cm purchased from the collection of istván ferenczy, 1914 inv. no. 5352 Museum of fine Arts, sculpture Collection

the sculpture depicts an episode in the ovidian story of Venus and Adonis: the goddess of love tries in vain to keep her mortal lover by her side, who instead embarks on a fatal hunt. Venus ’ s desperation and Adonis ’ s bravado were conveyed with theatrical gestures by ferdinando tacca, the master of the small bronze. the florentine sculptor, who also worked as a stage designer and architect, succeeded his father pietro tacca (1577–1640), a pupil of giambologna, as court sculptor to the Medici in 1640, and took over the bronze foundry at borgo pitti. in addition to monumental commissions (such as the equestrian statue of king philip iV of spain in Madrid [1640–1642] and those of grand dukes ferdinand i and Cosimo ii of tuscany in florence [1642–1649]), he produced a series of small bronzes featuring two figures, each with a mythological theme. these include the finely detailed budapest piece placed in the master’ s oeuvre by Anthony radcliffe. in addition to the small bronze depicting the fateful hunt for the wild boar, several other sculptures depicting hunting scenes were made in the seventeenth century in the sculpture workshop of the Medici, probably inspired by the hunts held by the grand ducal court.

ZsófiA VArgyAs

literAture: balogh 1975, vol. i, cat. no. 174; radcliffe 1976, 15; szőcs in London 2010, cat. no. 88.

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kÁroly MArkó tHe elder (lőcse [levoča, slovakia], 1791 – florence, 1860) Diana at the Hunt (Nymphs at the Hunt)

1836 oil on panel, 38.5 × 52.5 cm signed middle left: C Markó 1836 Romae gift, 1862 inv. no. 3085 Hungarian national gallery, Collection of 19th- and 20th-Century painting

károly Markó the elder’ s frequent use of mythological themes testifies to his wideranging education and knowledge of classical authors. Moreover, he repeatedly painted figures such as paris and diana, depicting different episodes and compositions. in Diana at the Hunt, he alludes to the story of the goddess of hunting through the attributes of hounds, bows and horns. Although his characters are not generalised into staffage figures, unlike his earlier paintings, which followed the representational tradition, the scene here does not fill the space of the painting: it is as if the magnificence, variety, and beauty of the ideal italian landscape were his primary subject, underlined by the people and animals inhabiting it. the composition revolves around a peculiar balance: on the left, we can see diana and the wood nymphs accompanying her, gesturing towards the deer fleeing across the watercourse on the right. this work, along with seven other Markó paintings, was purchased from the artist’ s estate in 1862 by the Association for the foundation of the national picture gallery and donated to the József nádor national picture gallery. the collection was continually expanded by purchases and gifts, until finally, at the end of the nineteenth century, it was transferred from the Hungarian national Museum to the Museum of fine Arts.

Adrienn prÁgAi

literAture: Hessky 2011, 65.

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kÁroly MArkó tHe elder (lőcse [levoča, slovakia], 1791 – florence, 1860) Diana and Endymion

1853 oil on canvas, 71 × 94.6 cm signed lower left: C. Markó S.p. Ap. 1853 purchased through public donation, 5 december 1861, pest inv. no. 3086 Hungarian national gallery, Collection of 19th- and 20th-Century painting

According to ancient sources, the story of diana and endymion was not linked to the goddess of hunting, but to the goddess of the moon. selene, the greek goddess of the moon, was only transformed into diana in the seventeenth century; from then on, as in the painting by károly Markó the elder, the goddess is depicted mounted on a deer, carrying the attributes of hunting, the bow and arrows, on her way to visit her lover. According to mythology, the love selene felt for endymion was so fierce that she could not accept that the young shepherd would grow old and die, so instead, she lulled him into eternal slumber. every night the moon goddess admired the boy ’ s never-fading beauty. later, when the moon goddess was portrayed as diana, the cast of characters was expanded, with Cupid leading the lover to the ever-sleeping endymion, set in an idyllic moonlit landscape – as we can see in Markó’ s painting. the ageing Markó, by that time suffering from an eye disease, painted the story of the lovers in 1853, the year he visited pest, in the last phase of his life, after he had settled near florence. He already had an enormous cult following, and this only increased his death, when his legacy, including Diana and Endymion, was donated to the Hungarian national Museum.

Adrienn prÁgAi

literAture: Budapest 2011, 112.

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JóZsef rónA (lovasberény, 1861 – budapest, 1939) Diana

between 1880 and 1910 bronze, 16 cm signed on the base, on the left: Róna József purchased from the artist, 1937 inv. no. 56.543-n Hungarian national gallery, Collection of sculptures, Coins and Medals

the artist, who started out as an apprentice carpenter, learned sculpture in Vienna from 1879 to the mid-1880s. under the mentorship of Caspar von Zumbusch (1830–1915), he acquired not only the skills needed to express biblical and classical themes, but also the requisite knowledge to create monumental works that best suited his artistic inclination. Among his most famous works is the neo-baroque equestrian statue of prince eugene of savoy that stands in front of the Hungarian national gallery, whose composition, monumentality, oval pedestal and spatial arrangement are testimony to the influence of róna ’ s erstwhile master (Zumbusch produced the equestrian statue of Archduke Albrecht in front of the Albertina in Vienna). we do not know what relationship József róna had with hunting. it is likely that his interest in antiquity was due to Zumbusch’ s example and his scholarship in rome, and the two dianas shown here may have been inspired by the sculptural conventions of the time. the archaically styled piece bought from the artist in 1937 and the sculpture later acquired as a gift from his widow were both probably made during or immediately after his stay in italy. the stele-like composition can only be identified as the work of a young modern sculptor from the plasticity of the figures.

ZoltÁn subA

literAture: lengyel 1910, 23–36; róna 1929; kenyeres 1982, vol. ii, 532.

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JóZsef rónA (lovasberény, 1861 – budapest, 1939) Diana Mounted on a Stag

between 1880 and 1910 bronze, 25 cm signed on the base: Róna J. gift of the artist’ s widow inv. no. 56.773-n Hungarian national gallery, Collection of sculptures, Coins and Medals

Diana Mounted on a Stag appears to be a typical classicising genre sculpture of the period, but the face of the goddess of hunting gives the impression of an archaising copy. géza lengyel, in his 1910 article on József róna, points out that “[producing] more intimate sculpture was, by his own admission, a means of relaxation. His energies were actually bound up in monumental tasks. ” the artist’ s autobiography of 1929, however, leads us to a contradictory conclusion: his vivid recollections of the beauty of the female body, the longing for models and the nudes depicted after them, and portraits that were either unfinished or not yet begun, give the impression that the elderly sculptor’ s interest in “more intimate sculpture ” was not merely a temporary pastime.

ZoltÁn subA

literAture: lengyel 1910, 23–36; róna 1929; kenyeres 1982, vol. ii, 532. . 72

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JeAn AlexAndre JosepH fAlguière (toulouse, 1831 – paris, 1900) Diana

sculpted: ca. 1882; cast: ca. 1890 bronze, 42.5 × 37 × 26 cm purchased, 1980 inv. no. 80.1.u Museum of fine Arts, Collection of Art after 1800

Alexandre falguière was one of the most celebrated french sculptors in the second half of the nineteenth century. the full-figured, life-size statue of diana, the roman goddess of hunting, is considered one of his best-known works. the statue, presented at the 1882 exhibition at the salon in paris, was both a success and a scandal at the same time, as many critics complained that the artist did not portray the goddess in an idealised way. instead of following classical tradition, falguière opted for a realistic depiction of the female body, accentuating diana ’ s human character by emphasising her natural proportions and buxom charms, considered vulgar by many. nevertheless, the artist produced several variations on the same theme, including in one of his (relatively rare) paintings, and his masterpiece also became extremely popular as a bust. only the crescent adorning the forehead tells us that we are looking at diana, but as the body is not present here to distract us from the goddess ’ s unidealised facial features, the bust’ s defiant and radiant profile shines through to full effect.

AnnA ZsófiA koVÁCs

literAture: Javel 1898, 30–32; bayard 1898, 61–63; bénédite 1902, 8–9; illyés 2001, 134–35.

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AntAl rudolf weinberger (resica [reșița, romania], 1879 – Vienna, 1936) Allegory of Art and Hunting

1910 embossed bronze, plaquette dimensions: 75 × 57 mm signed below on the front, on the right: WEINBERGER; on the left: WIEN 1910 purchased, 1985 inv. no. 86.39 p Hungarian national gallery, Collection of sculptures, Coins and Medals

of Hungarian origin, Antal rudolf weinberger graduated from the Academy of fine Arts in Vienna and subsequently stayed in the city, where he received numerous commissions and became a regular exhibitor at the künstlerhaus. His works were often exhibited in budapest at the exhibitions of the national Hungarian society of fine Arts. the best-known Hungarian piece among his extensive oeuvre of medals and plaques is the sándor petőfi Medal, which was created in 1908. weinberger’ s plaque was made to commemorate the first international hunting exhibition held in Vienna in 1910, which also focused greatly on culture: in the pavilion of painting and Applied Arts, the public could see works by Hans Makart (1840–1884) and franz xaver von pausinger (1839–1915), the latter of whom was frequently commissioned by Hungarian aristocrats. the plaque depicts an allegory of art and hunting. the former is represented by a painter, while hunting is personified by the goddess diana, whose attributes are the bow and arrows and the radiant crescent moon on her head. Alongside literature, the visual arts are a particularly important part of the hunting tradition: after Vienna in 1910, the 1971 world Hunting exhibition in budapest also featured a special exhibition of paintings and sculptures related to the theme, and a contemporary art competition was also held on this occasion.

Adrienn prÁgAi

literAture: siklóssy 1910, 62, 65–66; Erdészeti Lapok 1910, 590–602; bányai 1996, 62, 211–15.

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AlAdÁr gÁrdos (budapest, 1878 – budapest, 1944) Diana

ca. 1923 Marble, 89 × 34 × 26 cm signed on the side, beside the left foot, in cursive script: Gárdos A. purchased from a private individual, 1960 inv. no. 60.50-n Hungarian national gallery, Collection of sculptures, Coins and Medals

“sculpture, whose main aim is the expression of absolute form, should never strive to achieve results through cheap, so-called painterly effects. ” these words were written by Aladár gárdos in an article published in 1917, in which he emphasises the importance of proficiency in various sculptural materials (stone, bronze, wood) and states that works of sculpture should achieve a sense of materiality. Contemporary critics of his marble sculptures described them as “radiating spirituality ” with forms that “ vibrate with human emotions ” . gárdos ’ s sculpture of diana was presented at the exhibition of the benczúr society exhibition at the national salon in budapest in 1923. the mythological identification of the nude figure is helped by the crescent moon adorning her head, which is turned towards the left shoulder. diana is identified with luna, the goddess of the moon. Her name is also derived from the word dia (’moon/light’). Among the deities of the pantheon, diana is the counterpart of Artemis in roman mythology, and is therefore primarily the goddess of hunting. this aspect of her being is alluded to in gárdos ’ s statue by her attributes (the quiver on her left side and the short arrow resting on her thigh in her right hand), but this is not the prominent focus. furthermore, while diana is also a symbol of virginity in general, here, the depiction of the young female nude, resting on her left leg with her right knee gently bent, is dominated by a kind of repressed sensuality rather than by chaste modesty.

Judit sZeifert

literAture: gárdos 1917, 761; Budapest 1923, lot 121; Budapest 1929, lot 181; Ojság 1929, 4; Népszava 1929, 14.

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