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The Battle between the Gods and the Giants

Animated scene of many mostly nude figures in close combat, on earth and aloft in low-hanging clouds, reaching toward one another with long spears.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • Animated scene of many mostly nude figures in close combat, on earth and aloft in low-hanging clouds, reaching toward one another with long spears.

Date:

c. 1608

Artist:

Joachim Antonisz. Wtewael
Dutch, c. 1566-1638

About this artwork

The subject of the victory of the gods of Olympus over the ancient race of giants provided Joachim Wtewael with the opportunity to depict exaggerated athletic poses and striking contrasts of space and light. From the clouds, the Olympian gods wield their attributes as weapons: Jupiter hurls thunderbolts; Neptune brandishes his triton; and Mercury uses his caduceus as a spear. The helmeted figure on the right is Minerva, the goddess of wisdom and war. The painting’s gemlike effect results from the use of a copper support and from its small scale. The artist’s self-conscious display of his skills was a hallmark of the international style known as Mannerism, which was fashionable in Holland around 1600.

Status

On View, Gallery 213

Department

Painting and Sculpture of Europe

Artist

Joachim Antonisz. Wtewael

Title

The Battle between the Gods and the Giants

Place

Netherlands (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1603–1613

Medium

Oil on copper

Dimensions

15.6 × 20.3 cm (6 1/8 × 8 in.)

Credit Line

Through prior acquisition of the George F. Harding Fund

Reference Number

1986.426

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/105466/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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