A NORTH ITALIAN ENGRAVED MIRROR

LATE 18TH CENTURY

Details

A NORTH ITALIAN ENGRAVED MIRROR
Late 18th Century
Depicting Perseus slaying Medusa and behind him the Goddess Minerva carrying her shield which reflects the face of the soldier and with a spear in the other hand, in a landscape with trees in the background, within a moulded giltwood frame
13 in. x 11 in. (33 cm. x 28 cm.)

Lot Essay

This mirror-engraved vignette, recalling ancient Virtue, represents a scene from the history of Perseus from Ovid's Metamorphoses. Minerva punished the youthful Medusa for claiming that her hair was more beautiful than that of the goddess, by transforming her locks into snakes. Here the mirrored reflection in Minerva's shield assists Perseus as he slays the gorgon Medusa.

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