Mars (from the Tarocchi, series A: Firmaments of the Universe, #45)

1467

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Dominant colour

Mars (from the Tarocchi, series A: Firmaments of the Universe, #45) is a 1467 by Master of the E-Series Tarocchi, a Renaissance work, depicting Ferrara, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Master of the E-Series Tarocchi
When & what style?: 1467 · Renaissance
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

You see a male figure seated on a chariot-like thing. He's personified as Mars, the planet. This figure is interesting because it's part of a series of engravings about the universe and its parts. The series has the seven planets from old astronomy and some celestial spheres. It's cool that Mars is shown as a person, not just a planet. Check out the work of Master of the E-Series Tarocchi to see more like this.

The story of this work

Overview

This engraving is part of the Tarocchi group marked with the letter “A”, and named Firmaments of the Universe . This series comprises the seven planets from the classical astronomy (Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn) and the three celestial spheres that separate them from the Supreme Entity ( Prima Causa ) from which everything was originated. Here, Marte (Mars) is personified as a full-length male figure, in frontal view, and seated on a chariot-like throne. Mars is armored and holds up a sword in his right hand. A wolf lays at his feet.

Read the full account in the museum source.