Queen Penelope and their son Telemachus were awaiting the return of Odysseus, whose ships ended up off the island of the Cyclops.
Jordaens
Neptune’s trident has three tines, while Pluto’s is a bident with only two. Or it could be a pitchfork. How to read them in paintings.
Zeus comes up with a plan to reduce the number of mortals, and completes one of the first two steps, marrying Thetis to a mortal. And what a wedding feast, thanks to Eris.
Without a title and the story in a fable, paintings can be hard to identify, and even harder to read. Examples from 1500-1751.
Series telling the whole Epic Cycle from Zeus’s decision to reduce the mortal population, to the death of Odysseus.
Physiognomy originated in ancient Greece, but was codified by Lavater in 1772; phrenology followed from 1796, and together they attracted many painters.
Odysseus and his crew survive their encounter with the Sirens, but the hero has to endure 7 years with Calypso before he meets Nausicaä.
How Odysseus and his crew escaped the one-eyed giant Polyphemus, then became turned into pigs by the sorceress Circe.
A selection of meals eaten outdoors, by the gods, in Boccaccio’s Decameron, Manet’s controversial luncheon, and by a boating party.
Known from her wedding, which led to the Trojan War, and for being the mother of the Greek warrior Achilles, she is well-known in paintings.
The Eclectic Light Company 