Sheet 4: Men carrying trophies at left, trumpeters at right, from "The Triumph of Julius Caesar" 1599

Andrea Andreani created this woodcut, "Men carrying trophies at left, trumpeters at right, from "The Triumph of Julius Caesar"", sometime before 1629. The procession teems with symbols of Roman power and victory. The trumpets, emblazoned with inscriptions honoring Julius Caesar, resonate with ancient Roman triumphs, public rituals designed to display military success. The vessels overflow with bounty, alluding to both material riches and power. Even the sacrificial bull, adorned with laurel wreaths, speaks to the religious underpinnings of Roman authority. We see similar processions in triumphal arches across the Roman empire, and even echoed in Renaissance paintings celebrating rulers. What’s striking here is the emotional charge, like a fever dream, of triumph turned into something unsettling. This image is like a persistent echo, reminding us that power is fleeting, but the symbols we create in its name can haunt us for centuries.