Pluto mit dem Zweizack auf einem Thron 1743

Paul Egell created this drawing of Pluto with a trident on a throne using pen and grey ink with grey wash, probably in the first half of the 18th century. We see Pluto, king of the underworld, with his three-pronged trident, enthroned and attended by figures in a shadowy space. Egell would have expected his viewers to recognize these figures and their classical associations, which had been kept alive through literature and art. But what was the role of art in perpetuating these ideas? This work was produced during the late Baroque era in Germany, a time of both religious and social upheaval. Aristocratic patronage determined the style of art, which was often inspired by Classical and religious themes. Through studies of Egell’s drawings and historical sources on the institutions of art at that time, we can examine the ways artists like Egell negotiated the demands of their patrons and the social function of art.