Original author: Yu KePay attention to !!Unauthorized shall not be allowed**!
In the Kure Culture Museum"The Empire of Art".On the poster of the special exhibition, a sleeping child with his head bowed stands out, and it is the famous Cupid. His hair is slightly curly, his head is slightly lowered, his left hand is on his knee, he is sleeping, his body is slightly chubby, with baby fat, and the two small wings on his back are small and cute. It is displayed at the entrance of the pavilion, as if to guide people to explore this romantic art empire together.
Eros or Cupid?
Eros in Sleep 2nd century AD Marble.
Collection of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples.
The sculpture is called "Eros in Sleep", and people may be familiar with its winged image, and they can't help but think of Cupid, but they may wonder about its name "Eros". Like many ancient Roman gods, Cupid's precursors can be traced back to ancient Greek mythology. In early Greek mythology, Eros was the god of love and lust. As early as the 7th century BC, in Hesiod's Theogony, Eros appeared:
The first came into being Kaos (chaos), and then Gaia, the vast earth, the eternal foundation of all the gods who called the snow-covered Olympus home, and the dark Tartarus, the goddess of love, in the depths of the wide earth, the most beautiful among the immortal gods, who could make all the gods and all men stunned, and make them lose their minds and minds. ”
The Theogony describes Eros as one of the five gods created from the initial chaos of the universe, and is a peer of Gaia, the goddess of the earth, Tartarus, the god of the abyss, Erebos, the god of darkness, and Niks, the goddess of the night. It can be seen that the Eros at this time is not the same person as the later Eros, and he should be the old god of love.
At the beginning of the genealogy, it is mentioned that this old goddess of love has no gender and represents all the impulses in the universe. According to the description of early Greek mythology, the ancient god of love, Eros, was the primordial god representing fertility, a primordial creature hatched from the "egg of the world", and the driving force of life at the center of the universe, and this driving force was "love". (The name "eros" in Eros means "eros" in Greek, from which the roots of the modern English words "er" and "erot" are derived.) And with the end of creation, this love also changed, gradually becoming love between people, not just for reproduction and reproduction. Thus, in Roman times, the ancient god of love Eros evolved into a young god of love.
According to the mythology of late ancient Greece, Aphrodite is one of the twelve main gods of Mount Olympus with Zeus as the third generation of god kings, and is the "god of love and beauty".
In the process of evolution, Cupid actually retains the driving force of the ancient god of love, Eros, and the small bow and arrow that Cupid has is its embodiment. Cupid had two arrows, one golden and one silver (lead). A person who is shot by a golden arrow will reap love for it, but if he is shot by a silver arrow (lead arrow), he will be disgusted with the other person and refuse love. Therefore, Cupid has always been used as a symbol of love.
Cupid's image transmutation
Cupid in the Greek period was a slender and young man, and his size and proportions defined the Greek ideal of beauty. Unlike most other gods, he had a pair of wings, a trait that also continued into Roman times.
Plate with Eros;340 320 BC;Red figurines.
5×24.4 cm;Walters Museum of Art, Baltimore, USA.
Over time, Greek art increasingly incorporated Cupid's ** into his artistic depictions. The arrows of the god of love can make men and women fall in love instantly, and this winged god often appears in various works in the image of holding a bow and arrow. At the same time, he also retains the proportions of an adult, but the overall size of the body is displayed much smaller than that of the surrounding gods. This may be the beginning of the rejuvenation of the image of Cupid. Another thing that makes Cupid young is his personality traits. As Cupid appears more as a mythological character, he is often portrayed as more playful and immature.
Eros plays the double flute, the oil bottle (Lekythos) of the Providence painter Glick;Early Classical period 470 460 BC;Place of manufacture: Attica, Athens, Greece;It is now in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
The Greek writer also tried to make Cupid appear younger through scenes where his mother and other gods rebuke him, as if he were a child. In literature, Cupid is increasingly depicted as a boy or a small child. The poet Ovid, best known for The Metamorphosis, The Art of Love, and The ** of Love, was a major contributor to the spread of the Cupid myth. In the early verses of The Art of Love, Ovid notes that Venus appointed him as the guide of "tender love" and describes Cupid as "a boy of his young age and easy to control......Born by the goddess Venus" In the second book, Cupid is described as "changeable and with two wings".
By the Hellenistic era, the Romans had largely followed the Greek mythological pair, with Cupid appearing in a more childlike form. This Xi continued into Roman art, and the trend towards the rejuvenation of Cupid's image became more pronounced. This shift in style also reflects a change in attitudes towards love: the Greeks often viewed love based on sexual desire, while the Romans tended to view love from a more naïve and romantic perspective, which naturally extended to the view of Cupid, the goddess of love.
When Cupid appears as a toddler, it is the little assistant of Venus, the goddess of love. As a child, he was naughty and unruly, playing with people's hearts like toys. If you want to talk about Cupid's stubbornness, the most representative is the story of Apollo and Daphne.
Venus on the throne 1st century AD frescoes.
Collection of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples.
In Ovid's Metamorphosis, it is written that the first love of the sun god was Daphne, the daughter of Pennius, and it was not blind luck, but the result of Cupid's rage.
Not long after the sun god Apollo defeated the giant python, he happened to pass by and saw the little god of love bending the bow and pulling the string, so he sneered: "Naughty boy, what is the use of holding such a powerful **?It only fits my shoulders so that I can shoot beasts and enemies with precision, and the python (whose filthy body once occupied many acres of 460 acres) has just been slain by me, and its whole body is covered with arrow feathers. As for you, it's better to use your own torch honestly to light the inexplicable flame of love, don't touch my honor!This angered Cupid, so he raised his bow and arrow, and shot the golden arrow at Apollo, and then fired another abominable lead arrow, which struck Daphne, the daughter of the river god.
Apollo, who was hit by the golden arrow, became obsessed with Daphne and became madly infatuated with Daphne, but Daphne developed an extreme hatred for Apollo. Apollo began to pursue Daphne in a frenzy, but Daphne avoided her because of the disgust caused by the lead arrows, and in order to get rid of Apollo, she ran out of energy, and finally when she ran to the river, she called out to her river god father for help, and the river god could not bear to be harassed by his daughter anymore, and reluctantly turned Daphne into a laurel tree.
Bernini 1622-1625 Marble sculpture 243cm
Galleria Borghese Gallery, Rome.
Her legs became roots and dug deep into the earth, her hands became branches, and her beautiful hair turned into leaves. Apollo watched Daphne turn into a laurel tree, and was so grieved that he hugged the laurel tree and wept bitterly. This tragedy is the result of Cupid's stubborn vengeance, the little god of love, and the power of these two arrows also alludes to the impulsive, primordial driving force of love that Cupid represents.
The Roman period tended to portray Cupid as a young boy or even a toddler, and as a retinue of Venus, sometimes appearing to be an adult but still a child in size. However, there are exceptions, such as when people describe the story of Cupid and Psyche, as a husband, Cupid still presents as a physically fit young man.
Antonio Canova
1793, Marble sculpture, Louvre, Paris, France.
The story of Cupid and Psyche originally comes from Apuleius' Tale of the Golden Donkey, written in the second century AD, and tells the story of how Cupid and Psyche overcome many obstacles and eventually become married. In this story, Cupid is not a character who facilitates or breaks up the love of others, but becomes the protagonist of the pursuit of love.
The beginning of the story is because of Psyche's beauty, because of his shocking appearance, Psyche is called "the second advent of the god of beauty", when Venus heard this rumor, he felt offended, so he sent his son Cupid to take revenge, let Psyche marry the monster of **. But surprisingly, Cupid fell in love with Psyche at first sight, and instead of letting her marry the monster, he married her. Psyche is taken by Cupid to a mysterious palace where she can only meet him every night in the dark, so she never sees him for what he really is.
One day, Psyche's curiosity drives her to light a lamp at night to see Cupid's face, but she accidentally injures him and loses his divine powers of love. In order to save Cupid, Psyche goes to intercede with Venus and embarks on a difficult journey and undergoes a series of tests. Eventually, she succeeded in restoring Cupid's power of love, reuniting with him, and receiving the blessings of the gods, becoming a god and living a happy life.
Segui's Ecstasy, William Adolf Bouguereau, 128x220cm, 1899, oil on canvas.
The story of Cupid and Psyche symbolizes trials and sacrifices in love. It emphasizes that love requires loyalty, trust, and self-sacrifice in order to overcome all kinds of difficulties. Their stories have also become a common theme for artists to show themes such as love, beauty, wisdom, loyalty, and curiosity.
The power of love
The Roman poet Virgil's Pastoral Psalm 10 reads: "Omnia vincit amor : et nos cedamus amori!."(Love conquers all, let's give in to love!)In the poem, Cupid is used as the embodiment of "love," meaning that love is capable of conquering all aspects of human civilization. Later, "love conquers everything" gradually evolved into an artistic theme, and artists often put Cupid above the symbolic achievements of civilization in their works.
Cupid, painted by the famous painter Caravaggio in 1601, exemplifies this theme well. Cupid in the painting is not depicted in the standard portrait style of the Roman goddess of love, but draws inspiration from Michelangelo's Statue of the Victor, giving the painting a unique style. In this painting, Cupid's wings are dark and huge, his expression is contemptuous and arrogant, and he tramples his violin, armor, crown, ruler, compass, pen, manuscript, bay leaf, and flowers, all of which are symbols of science, art, fame, and power. Cupid's contemptuous expression and arrogant posture seem to illustrate that worldly love is mocking the highest morals, intellect, and values of mankind.
Eros of Victory, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 1601, oil on canvas, now in the Louvre Museum, Paris.
In the painter's view, love is a physical need of man, although it is worldly, but it has a powerful power of conquest, and its energy is much higher than the hypocrisy and cumbersome so-called knowledge. People only need to obey their own desires, and do not have to obey any laws, institutions, and moral constraints, that is, love can conquer everything.
The Power of Love in the Three Elements, Benjamin West, 1809, Oil on canvas, Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, USA.
In addressing the theme of love conquering all, Benjamin West's painting not only depicts Cupid, but also Venus, the goddess of love, and its symbol, the dove, while the image of Hemen, the god of marriage, holding a torch, further emphasizes the power of love. The eagle, seahorse, and lion symbolize the creatures of the air, water, and earth, respectively, all bound by the power of love. Reflecting the neoclassical emphasis on order and reason, it shows that love is the force that unites and rules all the elements of the world. It is the artist who is inspired by the ancient world and its stories, using them to express contemporary ideas about society, governance and morality, highlighting the universality and eternity of love.
The Triumph of Eros by Titian Vecellio 1545
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.
It is worth mentioning that the lion as an important element in the appearance of Cupid does not only appear in the above paintings by Benjamin West. In art history, the depiction of Cupid appearing with a lion is rich in symbolism. The lion, often considered a symbol of strength, power, and courage, and sometimes a symbol of pride and anger, is often placed in contrast with Cupid, the goddess of love, to demonstrate the power of love to overcome these intense emotions.
Cupid on the Lion, Venzelaus Holar, copper engraving, 1652
In a series of copper engravings by Venzerlaus Horal based on a sketch by Julio Romano, Cupid is depicted riding on a lion that tames the lion, alluding to the taming effect of love on the primordial forces of nature, emphasizing the domination of love over all living beings, no matter how powerful or ferocious, to succumb to the power of love. The recurrence of the artistic representations of Cupid and the Lion is not only a testament to the skill and creativity of the artists, but also an emphasis on the eternal and universal theme of the power of love.
Summary
From the ancient god of love to the later little god of love Cupid, it has never been a stereotypical and single image, and the transmutation of Cupid's image not only reflects people's social cognition of love, but also reveals the evolution and adaptation of human emotional rules. Just like today, people are Xi using the image of an innocent child to depict Cupid, reflecting the pursuit of pure and immaculate love. From myth to reality, the power of love shows its enduring influence in shaping the course of civilization.
References:
1] (Ancient Rome) by Ovid;Translated by Mei Ying;Translated by Wang Yuerui in Chinese. The Art of Love [M].Hohhot:Inner Mongolia University Press, 200708.
2] (Ancient Greek) by Hesiod;Zhang Zhuming, translated by Jiang Ping. Work & Time Divine Genealogy [M].Beijing:The Commercial Press, 199111.
3] (de) Zeman (Seemann, O.).Author;Translated by Zhou Hui. Greco-Roman Mythology [M].Shanghai:Shanghai People's Publishing House, 200505.
4] (Ancient Rome) by Apleius;Translated by Lu Xin and Rui Jin. The Legend of the Golden Donkey [M].Harbin: Northern Literature and Art Publishing House, 200201.
5] Guan Yue. From Eros to Cupid - The Evolution of Cupid's Image [J].Art Appraisal,2022(16):48-55
6] spencer, f. a. (1932). the literary lineage of cupid (concluded). the classical weekly, 25(18), 139–144.
7] john l. varriano, car**aggio (penn state press, 2006), pp. 57, 130.
Related Special Exhibitions
Exhibition Name:An empire of art – the National Archaeological Museum of Naples with masterpieces of ancient Roman artefacts.
Exhibition Hours:October 23, 2023 February 29, 2024.
Exhibition Venue:The second special exhibition hall of the Wu Culture Museum.