Arcus Ferdinandini Pars Anterior, Theodoor van Thulden, 1635-1641 (c.)

Plate 26: the arch of ferdinand: the rear face; two-tiered structure with lower storey articulated by six columns framing three arches and continued on upper storey with caryatid terms and statues of female personifications; dedication to cardinal-infante ferdinand as protector of german liberty and defender of religion over central portal; large centerpiece canvas on tympanum depicts prince ferdinand and his cousin, ferdinand iv, king of hungary, at the battle of nördlingen; the gable is crowned by aurora in the guise of a winged victory riding in on a chariot drawn by white horses and proferring laurel wreaths and palm branches in her outstreched arms; flanking her two tree trunks laden with military trophies and with bound captives at their bases; at left and right are the dioscuri, castor and pollux, wearing star-emblazoned helmets and each guiding a horse and bearing a standard with the monogram for ferdinand encircled in a wreath; in pediment above the principal picture two eagles attack a serpent and to the left and right stand the sculpted personifications of pietas, veiled and holding a chalice and patera, and germania, supporting a shield adorned with the imperial eagle; beside them are full-length portraits of king ferdinand of hungary at left, with a portrait of emperor ferdinand ii in the roundel above, and the cardinal-infante ferdinand at right, surmounted by a roundel with a portrait of his brother king philip iv; flanking the upper tier are caryatid terms, winged cupids carrying standards and male figures holding torches; on the entablature of the lower storey are the coats of arms of the two ferdinands along with their emblems: at left, the owl and shield with gorgon head associated with minerva, and opposite, the club, lion's skin and thunderbolt of hercules; after peter paul rubens; illustration for gaspar gevaerts' "pompa introitus" (antwerp, 1641) etching. Date: 1635-1641 (c.). Dimensions: Height: 534 mm (plate-mark); Height: 649 mm (sheet); Width: 390 mm; Width: 543 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Gaspar Gevaerts. Collection: British Museum. Arcus Ferdinandini Pars Anterior (BM 1884,0112.57)