Allegorische voorstelling met Athene, Venus en Juno 1608 - 1688

Claude Mellan etched this allegorical representation featuring Athena, Venus, and Juno sometime in the 17th century. Here, the Roman goddesses assume their traditional roles: Athena, with her owl, symbolizes wisdom, while Venus embodies love and beauty. Juno, often depicted with a peacock, represents marriage and prosperity. Notice how these symbols were not created in a vacuum. The owl, for example, has been associated with knowledge since ancient Greece. The peacock, initially a symbol of immortality in early Christianity, became linked with vanity and pride in later Renaissance art. These shifts in meaning, are not linear but cyclical. We see these archetypes and symbols resurface throughout history, shaped by collective memory and cultural shifts. This phenomenon deeply affects how we, consciously or subconsciously, respond to them, revealing the emotional and psychological power of visual symbols.