Catalogue Roberti Fine Art, TEFAF Maastricht 2026 (1) compressed - Flipbook - Page 79
Fig. 2. Domenico Tintoretto, Susanna in her bath, 15181519. oil on canvas, 168 x 238 cm. Musée du Louvre,
Paris. © Musée du Louvre
Fig. 3. Tiziano Vecellio, Danaë. oil on canvas, 135 x 152
cm. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. ©
Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien
The thrilling subject matter of Danaë was often little more than an excuse to portray the female
nude, in much the same way as the theme of Susanna and the Elders was employed, but it also
presented an opportunity to explore a complex and multi-layered theme. The figure of Danaë had
been taken as an emblem of moral chastity, and since Perseus’ conception only took place through
divine intervention, the Church was not slow in appropriating the theme as a prefiguration of the
Annunciation. The potential similarities with the Christian Annunciation must surely end there
though, for the depiction of the nude does not shy away from celebrating the overtly erotic aspects
of the story. The tale must also, on some level, be a cautionary though thinly veiled allegory: even
locked away in a tower, Danaë, representative of all humankind, is helpless to resist the lure of
money.
In 1614 König returned to Augsburg, where he became Dean of the Painter’s Guild in 1622 and in
the following year was elected to the Greater Council of the City. The present work, dated 1616,
must therefore have been painted after the artist’s return to Germany.
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