Antique Satire Print-CYCLE OF NATURE-STORK-Cats-1655

Copperplate engraving on a verge type hand laid paper. Authenticity 100% guaranteed. on paper.

Size in cm: The overall size is ca. 25 x 38.5 cm. The image size is ca. 13 x 13 cm. Size in inch: The overall size is ca. 9.8 x 15.2 inch. The image size is ca. 5.1 x 5.1 inch.

Proverb / ethics emblem : ‘Staten en Ampten. – L’araigne mange la mouche, et le lizard l’araigne, etc. – De spin die eet de vliegh / de hagedis de spin. Die heeft het groene wout / en al de werelt in.’ (Phases and Professions. – The spider eats the fly, the lizard eats the spider. it all happens in the green forest as part of the World.) This plate shows the cycle of nature. the spider eats the fly, the lizard the spider, the stork the lizard etc. The meaning of this emblem is that there is always something higher than you. Or as the saying goes. ‘every man may meet his match’. This old antique engraved copperplate print and accompanying poetry originate from ‘Alle de Wercken van den heere Jacob Cats…..’, (Complete Works of Jacob Cats) which was published from 1655 on. This plate is from a 1726 edition. The emblems depict lessons of many aspects of life. Each emblem typically has more than one meaning as Cats’ poems talk about ethics, wisdom and morale from the perspective of love, religion and society. His work has often been critisized, but contains a treasure of truth and symbolism, often as relevant as it was during the times of it’s creation. We might carry this item from a smaller size edition and a 19th c. ed. with steel engravings as well. Inquire if interested.Artists and Engravers: The Author is Jacob Cats, also known as Father Cats (born Nov. 10, 1577, Brouwershaven, Zeeland, Spanish Netherlands – died Sept. 12, 1660, Zorgvliet, near The Hague) Dutch poet. A magistrate and high official, he was enormously popular as a writer of emblem books, consisting of woodcuts or engravings with verses possessing a moral. His Mirror of Old and New Times (1632) contains many quotations that have become household sayings in the Netherlands, and he used it to express the ethical concerns of Dutch Calvinists, especially about love and marriage. The famous poetry by Jacob Cats is often accompanied by well engraved images after the design of Adriaen van de Venne. Not all engravings have been signed, but engravers indicated include J. Swelinc, I. Matham, Wil. Hondius, C. v. Quiborne, D. v. Bremden & possibly others.

Condition: 0

Keywords: ANTIQUE SATIRE PRINT-CYCLE OF NATURE-STORK-CATS

(PCO) A184-09