a dove in gold

Unknown artist
Pin with a Finial Shaped as a Dove Sitting on Pomegranates, 525–400 B.C., Gold
7.7 × 0.8 × 0.5 cm (3 1/16 × 5/16 × 3/16 in.), 96.AM.256
Gift of Barbara and Lawrence Fleischman
www.getty.edu

If this beautiful bird pin were mine, I could pin up my hair with it, or pin a loose dress together at my shoulder.  That's what its original owner, an Etruscan of 525-400 B.C. would have done.  Was she hoping to attract romance, or assured of it already?  Doves were favorites of Aphrodite/Venus, and pomegranates have symbolized beauty, love and fertility since the ancient Greeks.  Though the Etruscans lived in the area that eventually became Tuscany, they had transactions with expatriate Greek colonies in southern Italy.  I suspect that's where the idea for this imagery came from.  Just for the color and life  of it, I'll send you to this friendly article on pomegranate symbolism.

handy handle dog

Unknown
Lid, 5th century B.C., Bronze
12.5 × 22.6 cm (4 15/16 × 8 7/8 in.)
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

If this is a lid for a lebes (a type of ancient Greek cauldron, used at one time for cooking), as is thought, then its Etruscan craftsman had a sense of humor when fashioning the handle.  Probably the model was flopped near the warmth of the metalsmithy, waiting for dinnertime and a chance to beg for some of whatever was in the family pot.

"a dog that stinks, come on, come on"

thanks british library flickr (PD)

A little while ago I had a great deal of fun translating some cat proverbs from a huge Italian collection.  Today I'm going back in for wise words on dogs. Remember, I'm doing this with Google Translate, so correct me where you will.

Ogni tristo cane abbaia da casa sua -- Every sad dog barks from his house
A cane che puzza, dagli, dagli -- A dog that stinks, come on, come on (Idiom, and I have no clue -- curator)
Canini, gattini e figli di contadini, son belli quando son piccini -- Puppies, kittens and children of peasants are beautiful when they are little ones
A cani magri, mosche ingorde -- Lean dogs attract greedy flies
Porta rispetto al cane  per amor del padrone - Respect the dog for the sake of its master
Un cane arrabbiato corre soltanto nove giorni -- An angry dog runs only nine days
(BUT:) Niun cane arrabbiato corre sett'anni - An angry dog runs seven years  (I wonder which? - curator)
Al cane fu data la coda perche scodinzoli -- The dog was given its tail to wag it

- Strafforello, Gustavo, 1820-1903. La Sapienza Del Mondo: Ovvero, Dizionario Universale Dei Proverbi Di Tutti I Popoli, Raccolti, Tradotti, Comparati, E Commentati Da Gustavo Strafforello, Con L'aggiunta Di Aneddoti, Racconti, Fatterelli, E Di Illustrazioni Storiche, Morali, Scientifiche, Filologiche, Ecc. Torino: A. F. Negro, 1883. vol. 1. 229-33.

a standing dog c 1585

• Purchased with the support of the F.G. Waller-Fonds, www.rijksmuseum.nl

This engraving of a thoughtful fellow was created by Agostino Caracci circa 1582-85.  If the name sounds familiar but not quite, it's probably because you're thinking of his better-known brother, Annibale (the Italian version of "Hannibal").

another little spaniel, 1560s

Gift of Edith Neuman de Végvár, in honor of her husband, Charles Neuman de Végvár, 1963. www.metmuseum.org

This work by Northern Italian painter Bernardino Campi (1522-91) is known only as "Portrait of a Woman," and dates from the 1560's.  Here we find another example of a very small spaniel, this one portrayed in an oddly toylike way.  This may have something to do with Campi's Mannerist styling (seen in the lady's elongated figure and the extreme detail of her clothing).  If you're curious about Mannerism, which was a pretty curious movement in any case, here's an article at the Metropolitan.

good morning

Fletcher Fund, 1929 www.metmuseum.org

I think Etruscan askoi flasks are my new favorite things this week.  This askos (flask) dates from the 4th century B.C., and is a stylistic adaptation from earlier Greek bird-shape vases.  Askoi were based on the shape of plump full wineskins, which look a lot like a sitting bird, and askoi were popularly made in the shape of ducks (also nice and plump).  This rooster is an unusual variant.  Look at his perfectly modelled comb.
Here is an article on Etruscan bird-askoi from the Penn Museum, and another on Etruscan pottery overall from the Ancient History encyclopedia online.

squirrel thoughts

http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.5948 courtesy the rijksmuseum (PD)

The winter chill outside brings one particular squirrel to our bird feeders.  He must do quite well leeching off our winged visitors, as he's fat, though still able to outdistance the dog.  Off he goes, bouncing across the fencetops and leaving me with a yen to look up some squirrels of the past.  Here's a jewel I'd never seen before, from the Rijksmuseum: Francesco Montemezzano's "Portrait of a woman with a squirrel," c. 1565-75.  Can't see the squirrel very well, right?  Here's a squirrel-hance:

Look at the little belled collar.  Must have driven the little guy to distraction. (See how I didn't say "driven him nuts"?  I found this piece in an excellent list of squirrels in Medieval and Renaissance art, here.)
Montemezzano (Italian, c. 1540-1602) seems to have been a follower of Veronese's style; Veronese was known for the brilliance of his color and elegant portrayal of his sitters.

glorious plumage

courtesy wikimedia commons (PD)

Yes, I mean both sets of plumage, as Massimo Stanzione has celebrated them in this 1635 portrait of a "Woman in Neapolitan Costume."  Look, here's a page on Italian chickens. I think her friend is an Ancona.  How about you?