Neptune on the Ocean Waves, Guercino (Cento, 1591 – Bologna, 1666) Workshop of

Neptune on the ocean waves

Workshop of Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, known as Il Guercino (Cento, 1591 – Bologna, 1666)
Attributed to Ercole Gennari (Cento, 1597- Bologna, 1658)

Oil on canvas (138 x 112 cm. . Framed 160 x 135 cm.)

The work is accompanied by a critical study by Prof. Emilio Negro (Bologna, 2026)

The mighty mythological figure, the great God of the seas Poseidon (the equivalent of Neptune in the Roman phantasm), stands life-size, three-quarter length, statuary amidst the waves of a coastal view, which we glimpse on the right with a castle perched on the shore.

While the upper body twists to the left, the head looks away, downward, toward a sea creature emerging from the water, attempting to strike it with its trident. On the left side of the image, the surface of the sea moves toward the horizon, a band of clouds only faintly illuminated by an evening, almost nocturnal, sky. The face is framed by flowing, slightly wavy hair, with a high forehead and wrinkles that furrow the brow.

The theme is taken from Virgil's Aeneid (1.124-143), the moment when Neptune emerges from the waters furious because Aeolus, at Juno's instigation, has unleashed a storm to destroy Aeneas' fleet. The god, enraged by Juno's intrusion into his sphere of dominion, turns to the winds and begins a threat that he abruptly interrupts: "Quos ego..." (That I [will punish]...), the sentence remaining suspended because Neptune decides it is more urgent to calm the waters before proceeding to punishment.

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The work is sold complete with a gilded wooden frame and is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and descriptive iconographic card.

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