XX Nec prodest malis nec ledit bonos 1614

This engraving by Roemer Visscher, made around the turn of the 17th century, comes from a book of emblems, each combining image and text to convey a moral or proverb. Here, we see Fame depicted as a winged figure sounding a trumpet. The Latin inscription, "Nec prodest malis nec laedit bonos," translates to "It neither helps the evil nor harms the good." Visscher is playing on the ambiguous nature of Fame, acknowledging its power to both elevate and denigrate. This was a time of great social and religious upheaval in the Netherlands, and the visual vocabulary of emblems became a popular means of expressing complex ideas about truth, morality, and social order. To truly understand this image, we have to look at the specific cultural context in which it was produced, and the history of emblem books themselves. By researching the history of the book, the artist, and the social context of the time, we can gain a richer understanding of its meaning.