Callisto, Amor en Jupiter met de adelaar 1746

Jacob de Wit rendered this watercolour of Callisto, Amor and Jupiter as an eagle. The scene vibrates with mythological tension. Callisto, exposed, is visited by Cupid, while above, Jupiter lurks as an eagle. This symbol, the eagle, historically represented imperial power, divine authority, and masculine virility. The Greeks, Romans, and even the Aztecs saw in the eagle a representation of the supreme God, an idea that echoes through Renaissance art and beyond. The eagle, an ancient symbol of power and authority, appears in countless forms, even finding itself on national flags. But here, it suggests deception, a hidden agenda, the subconscious desires that drive the god Jupiter. De Wit taps into our shared unconscious understanding of these symbols, creating an image that engages with the primal aspects of the human psyche. Thus, the eagle in De Wit’s watercolour continues its symbolic journey, a testament to the cyclical persistence of images in our collective consciousness.