Vier seizoenen voorgesteld door vier kinderen 1778 - 1838

Anthonie van den Bos created this drawing titled "Four Seasons Represented by Four Children," using pen in brown and brush in brown ink. Note the cherubic children, each symbolizing a season. The child adorned with flowers represents spring, evoking the Roman goddess Flora. This motif stretches back to classical antiquity, where flowers signified renewal, and the cyclical nature of life. In Botticelli's "Primavera," Flora scatters blossoms, a gesture of rebirth. The symbolic weight of flowers continues to evolve; think of Ophelia in Shakespeare, where flowers communicate unspoken truths. We see these images reappear throughout art history, carrying layers of cultural memory. The act of adorning with or presenting flowers touches something primal, engaging our subconscious understanding of life's transience. Consider how the symbolism of the seasons, intertwined with human emotions, continually resurfaces, each time imbued with the weight of history and personal experience.