Portretten van Zacharias Ursinus, David Pareus, Festus Hommius en Johannes Spiljardus 1651 - 1701

Harmen de Mayer created this group portrait in print of Zacharias Ursinus, David Pareus, Festus Hommius, and Johannes Spiljardus. Enclosed within decorative ovals, these men are presented with the gravitas befitting their roles as theologians. The cherubic figure at the base, nestled beneath a cartouche, recalls ancient Roman funerary art, where such figures escorted souls to the afterlife, here perhaps symbolizing the lasting spiritual legacy of these men. Consider the evolution of the cherub: from pagan symbol to Christian angel, and its re-emergence during the Renaissance as a symbol of divine love and intellectual inspiration. This reflects a profound human desire to visualize the unseen, to bridge the earthly and the divine. It is a symbol that has been continually re-imagined. The cherub whispers to us of the cyclical nature of symbols, resurrected and reformed across time, charged with new meanings, yet still echoing the past.