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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Gallery Text

According to Greek mythology, Aeolus lived on the island Aeolia, identified today with Lipari or Stromboli, north of Sicily. He kept the winds in a cave and released them to help or impede nautical voyages. In this dynamic bronze, Aeolus is shown as a bearded old man with a powerful physique, a type shared with figures such as Neptune and the river gods. He is seated on a rocky pedestal that doubles as the winds’ cave. His hair blown backward and his rippling muscles catching the light, he places a large hand on one of the winds, manipulating it like an instrument; as if in response, the wind puffs out its cheeks. A second wind kneels beneath Aeolus’s foot and grasps the face of a third, shown emerging from or disappearing into the cave.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2005.159
People
Unidentified Artist
Title
Aeolus and the Winds
Other Titles
Alternate Title: River God with Three Putti
Classification
Sculpture
Work Type
sculpture
Date
1645-1670
Culture
Flemish
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/5519

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Bronze with black-brown patina
Technique
Cast
Dimensions
31.2 x 23 x 17.4 cm (12 5/16 x 9 1/16 x 6 7/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[Bernard Black Gallery, New York] sold; to Richard Sisson, Cuba, NY, 1968, bequest; to Harvard University Art Museums, 2005.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Bequest of Richard B. Sisson
Accession Year
2005
Object Number
2005.159
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Sculpture for a Small Museum-2, auct. cat., Bernard Black Gallery (New York, NY, 1968), no. 15, repr. in b/w

Exhibition History

  • Sculpture for a Small Museum-2, Bernard Black Gallery, New York, 01/01/1968 - 12/31/1968
  • 32Q: 2300 Dutch & Flemish, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 09/08/2017

Subjects and Contexts

  • Google Art Project

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu