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Personification of Air
(Baroque Europe )
One of the ways that Europeans of the 1600s imagined the universe was in terms of its fundamental elements—not the “periodic table of elements” of today, but the Four Elements, or kinds of matter, as defined by the ancient Greeks: earth, air, fire, and water. Adherence to classical thought was giving way to modern science, but personifications of the Four Elements remained popular as a way to visualize or “embody” the universe. Statues of them decorated gardens, libraries, and chambers of wonders.
“Air” is accompanied by an eagle and a chameleon. According to an ancient myth, the lizard could live on air. This clay model was made by the French court sculptor Le Hongre as a preliminary study for a marble statue commissioned for a series of the Four Elements displayed in the Allée d'Eau section of the gardens at the French royal palace at Versailles.
The model is signed and dated F Le Hongre; / 1683, and the left hand is broken off.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Dr. and Mrs. Henry Barton Jacobs, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Jacobs Sale, Baltimore, December 12, 1940, no. 889; Walters Art Museum, 1940, by purchase.
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| Examination | Cleaned for exhibition. | |
| Treatment | Cleaned | |
| Treatment | Cleaned in preparation for exhibition. |
Geographies
France, Versailles (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 23 1/4 in. (59 x 28 cm)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, 1940
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
27.501