Eimmart: Aeneas and the Trojans fulfill Anchises' prophecy

    Aeneas and his men sit in a circle on the grass at an unfolded table-cloth on which a bowl of fruit stands.

    Aeneas und seine Leute sitzen im Rund auf dem Rasen um ein ausgebreitetes Tafeltuch, auf dem eine Schale mit Früchten steht. (Suerbaum)

    Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 29.

    Comments

    This engraving depicts an important scene from Book VII. Aeneas and his men sit down to a meal in Italy but are still so hungry at the end of it that they eat the bread they used as plates or tables. Iulus jokes that they are eating their very tables, “heus, etiam mensas consumimus?” (116). In so doing, he fulfills a prophecy that had been made to Aeneas by his father, which he recalls at lines 124 through 127, saying that the Trojans would not find peace until they were forced by hunger to eat their tables. (Lucy McInerney)

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    1688
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    21.86x16.92cm
    Inscription
    Lib: VII. Aen: v. 107 Aeneas, primique duces, et pulcher Iulus,/ Corpora sub ramis deponent arboris altae:/ usque 147.
    Location
    Bavarian State Library, Munich
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    Eimmart: Aeneas leaves offerings for his nurse Caieta

      Aeneas leaves offerings for his dead nurse Caieta.

      Aeneas lässt Totenopfer für seine Amme Caieta darbringen. (Suerbaum)

      Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 28.

      Comments

      Book VII begins with a short epithet on the death of Aeneas’ nurse Caieta. In the engraving, a sheep has just been slaughtered, offerings are being burnt, and tributes have been set up. The ships in the background show that Aeneas and his men have just landed. (Lucy McInerney)

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      1688
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      21.86x16.92cm
      Inscription
      Lib. VII. Aen: v. 5 At pius exsequiis Aeneas rite solutis/ Aggere composito tumulit, etc./ usque 7.
      Location
      Bavarian State Library, Munich
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      Eimmart: Anchises shows Aeneas the fields of the blessed

        Anchises shows Aeneas and the Sibyl the fields of the blessed.

        Anchises zeigt Aeneas und der Sibylle die Gefilde der Seligen. (Suerbaum)

        Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 27.

        Comments

        Anchises sits between the Sibyl and Aeneas, teaching his son about the future of the Trojan race. All the souls waiting to be reborn fill up the background, mostly in military garb. There are five horses in the center of the field; horses are recognized as symbols of war, thus adding to the image of the future Rome as a powerful military state. (Lucy McInerney)

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        1688
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        21.86x16.92cm
        Inscription
        Lib. VI. Aen: v. 633. Dixerat: et pariter gressi per opaca viarum,/ Corripiunt spatium medium, foribusque propinquant.
        Location
        Bavarian State Library, Munich
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        Eimmart: Aeneas and the Sibyl see dead children by the Styx

          In the underworld Aeneas and the Sibyl see dead children on the banks of the Styx.

          In der Unterwelt sieht Aeneas mit der Sibylle am Ufer des Styx frühverstorbene Kinder. (Suerbaum)

          Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 26.

          Comments

          After having overcome Cerberus with the help of the Sibyl, Aeneas finds himself beyond the Acheron, on the banks of the Styx. The first thing he hears is the weeping of the infants that died early in life (426). They are shown as dark shades in the bottom right corner of the engraving. A beautiful detail is the boatman’s reflection in the water. (Lucy McInerney)

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          1688
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          21.86x16.92cm
          Inscription
          Lib: VI. Aen: v. 426. Continuo auditae voces, vagitus et ingens,/ Infantumque animae, flentes in limine primo:/ usque 529.
          Location
          Bavarian State Library, Munich
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          Eimmart: Aeneas tries to fight images in the Underworld

            Aeneas in the underworld under the elm tree pulls out his sword against the insubstantial visions of phenomena of monsters and is restrained by the Sibyl.

            Aeneas zückt in der Unterwelt unter der Ulme mit den nichtigen Träumen sein Schwert gegen Erscheinungen von Monstern und wird von der Sibylle zurückgehalten. (Suerbaum)

            Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 25.

            Comments

            Vergil describes this giant elm tree in the Underworld as the seat that "false Dreams" hold (quam sedem Somnia vana ten ere ferunt, 283-284). There are illusions clinging to each leaf in the engraving. The list of creatures from 286 to 289 include Centaurs, Scyllas, the hundred-armed Briareus, the Lernean Hydra, a Chimaera, Gorgons and Harpies and three-bodied Geryon. Most of these creatures can be seen behind the tree: a harpy hovers in the upper left hand corner above four centaurs, Cerberus the three headed dog lies beside the Chimaera. A giant snake curls in front of an other unknown fire-breathing creature in the center middleground. Aeneas trembles with sudden fear (290) and attempts to fight off the creatures before him, but the Sibyl explains that the creatures are incorporeal. (Lucy McInerney)

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            1688
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            Lib: VI. Aen: v. 282. In medio ramos annosaque brachia pandit/ Ulmus opaca, ingens./ usque 294.
            Location
            Bavarian State Library, Munich
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            Eimmart: Aeneas and the Sibyl in the underworld

              This engraving shows Aeneas and the Sibyl in the forecourt of the Underworld.

              Aeneas mit der Sibylle im Vorhof der Unterwelt. (Suerbaum)

              Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 24.

              Comments

              At the entrance to the underworld in lines 275 through 281 Aeneas encounters “pale Disease,” “sad Old Age,” “Fear,” “seductive Fame,” “filthy Need,” “Death,” “Pain,” “Sleep,” “evil Pleasure of the mind,” “death-dealing War,” and “insane Discord, her hair of vipers tied up with bloody bands.” This last one is seen in the right foreground of the engraving clutching three snakes in one hand. Aeneas and the Sibyl are illuminated by an unknown source of light, while the figures she gestures to are invariably in the dark. (Lucy McInerney)

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              1688
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              21.86x16.92cm
              Inscription
              Lib. VI. Aen: v. 273. Vestibulum ante ipsum, primusque in faucibus Orci/ Luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia Curae:/ usque 282.
              Location
              Bavarian State Library, Munich
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              Eimmart: Aeneas brings the Golden Bough to the Sibyl

                Aeneas, kneeling with Achates in front of the Sibyl in the temple next to a cave, shows her the Golden Bough.

                Aeneas, zusammen mit Achates vor der Sibylle im Tempel nebeneiner Höhle kniend, zeigt ihr den Goldenen Zweig. (Suerbaum)

                Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 23.

                Comments

                Having found the Golden Bough with the help of Venus’ doves, Aeneas brings it to the Sibyl. She stands on the steps of her temple at Cumae, and the many caves of the Euboean cliffs makeup the background, as described at 42-43. (Lucy McInerney)

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                1688
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                21.86x16.92cm
                Inscription
                Lib. VI. Aen: v. 210. Corripit extemplo Aeneas, avidusque refringit/ Cunctantem, et vatis portat sub tecta Sibyllae.
                Location
                Bavarian State Library, Munich
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                Eimmart: Palinurus falls overboard

                  Palinurus falls from the stern of a ship into the sea, the God of Sleep flies away with a branch in his hand.

                  Palinurus stürzt vom Heck eines Schiffes ins Meer, der Schlafgott mit einem Zweig in der Hand fliegt davon. (Suerbaum)

                  Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 22.

                  Comments

                  This engraving captures the moment in Book V when Palinurus falls headfirst from the ship. The god of sleep first tried to convince the helmsman to take a nap by imitating a friend (841-846). When that failed he used the branch that can be seen in his hand as he flies away, the leaves of which are drenched in water from the river Lethe. Virgil says, “ecce deus ramum Lethaeo rore madentem/ vique soporatum Stygia super utraque quassat/ tempora, cunctantique natantia lumina solvit.” (Lucy McInerney)

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                  1688
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                  21.86x16.92cm
                  Inscription
                  Lib. V. Aen: v. 841. -- puppique Deus consedit in alta/ Phorbanti similis: fuditque has ore loquelas:
                  Location
                  Bavarian State Library, Munich
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                  Brant: Vergil and Muse

                    On the left, Vergil sits at an ornate lectern with a high-backed chair. While this is not explicitly in the poem, Vergil inserts himself in two places within the first several lines, with the first person verb cano in line 1, and then an appeal to the muse in lines 8-11. The Muse mentioned in line 8 stands in front of Vergil in the center of the image. In the lower right is the Judgment of Paris, which started the events leading up to the Trojan War; the event is mentioned in lines 26-7. Venus, Juno, and Pallas stand next to each other accompanied by their attributes; Paris gives the apple of discord to Venus, who reaches out her hand for it. Behind the three goddesses, Hebe gives Jupiter a cup. This detail comes from the commentary of Servius, who says that Hebe may have given to the gods the cups which Ganymede had the honor of bearing -'"honores' autem dixit vel propter ministerium poculorum, quod exhibuit diis remota Hebe, Iunonis filia" (1.28). Above them, Jupiter in the form of an eagle carries off Ganymede to make him cup-bearer (line 28). At the top of the image is Carthage, with the three Fates, Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos, sitting in front holding their attributes. Carthage is introduced in lines 12-22, with half a line devoted to the will of the Fates at line 22. The Muse in the center of the image gestures broadly toward Carthage, highlighting its significance (Katy Purington).

                    Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 121r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

                    Comments

                    Sebastian Brant (1458­­–1521) was a humanist scholar of many competencies. Trained in classics and law at the University of Basel, Brant later lectured in jurisprudence there and practiced law in his native city of Strasbourg. While his satirical poem Das Narrenschiff won him considerable standing as a writer, his role in the transmission of Virgil to the Renaissance was at least as important. In 1502 he and Strasbourg printer Johannes Grüninger produced a major edition of Virgil’s works, along with Donatus’ Life and the commentaries of Servius, Landino, and Calderini, with more than two hundred woodcut illustrations (Annabel Patterson).

                    Following Vergil's words very closely, Brant gives Book One a prefatory panorama (fig. 10). The first person voice of the epic speaker which opens the poem is made explicit in the figure of Vergil himself writing to the dictation of the Muse that passage following upon "Musa mihi causas memora" which searches into the background of the brooding wrath of Juno that pursues the hero throughout the poem. The Muse's pointing finger indicates Carthage, whose future destruction by the offspring of Troy is known to the Fates, and also to scenes of old grudges strongly remembered: Jove's elevation of the Trojan Ganymede; the humiliating Judgment of Paris. This, then, is an exploration of Juno's mind within the convenience of a fictive landscape (Eleanor Winsor Leach).

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                    1502
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                    University of Heidelberg
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                    Eimmart: Neptune and his attendants

                      Neptune breaks his trip across the sea with his attendants.

                      Neptun bricht mit Gefolge zur Fahrt über das Meer auf. (Suerbaum)

                      Engraving from a German children’s picture-book version of the Aeneid by G. J. Lang and G. C. Eimmart, “A tapestry of Roman virtues as seen in Vergil’s Aeneas and his brave deeds, rendered in sparkling engravings, as illustrations of the remarkable deeds of antiquity, for the common benefit of noble youth,” (Peplus virtutum Romanarum in Aenea Virgiliano eiusque rebus fortiter gestis, ad maiorem antiquitatis et rerum lucem, communi iuventutis sacratae bono, aere renitens) (Nuremburg: J.L. Buggel, 1688), pl. 21.

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                      1688
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                      21.86x16.92cm
                      Inscription
                      Lib. V. Aen: v. 820. Subsidunt undae, tumidumque sub axe tonanti/ Sternitur aequor aquis:
                      Location
                      Bavarian State Library, Munich
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