Orpheus by Roelandt_savery

Roelandt SAVERY  Orphée charmant les animaux

Roelant_Savery_-_Orpheus_overvallen_door_Maenaden

roelandt_savery_orpheus_charming_the_animals

Roelandt savery-Orpheus with Beasts and Birds

roelandt-savery-orpheus-charming-the-animals

Orpheus and the animals (ancient mosaics)

According to Greek legends, Orpheus’s music had the power to attract wild animals which would gather around him to hear his music.

Lendas gregas atribuem à música tocada por Orfeu a capacidade de atrair os animais selvagens para a ouvir em seu redor.

Unknown-'Orpheus and the beasts'-Roman mosaic-from Tarsus   Antakya (Turkey)-Archaeological Museum (10568)

Unknown-'Orpheus and the animals'-Roman mosaic   Shahba (Syria)-Archaeological Museum

Unknown-'Orpheus and the animals'-Roman mosaic-3th century-from Piazza della Vittoria (building A)   Palermo-Museo Archeologico Regionale 'Antonio Salinas' (NI 2287)  

Unknown-'Orpheus and the animals'-Roman mosaic   Paphos (Cyprus)- Archaeological Museum (house of Orpheus)

Unknown-'Orpheus taming wild animals'-Roman mosaic    Dallas (Texas)-Museum of Art

Orpheus' death (Morte de Orfeu)

When legend becomes fact, only the legend matters. A group of Maenads, angry because they felt neglected, killed Orpheus and tore his body. They threw his head to the river Hebrus, where it floated singing 'Eurydice'. The nine Muses put the several parts of his dismembered body together and buried him on Mount Olympus.


Quando a lenda se torna facto, só a lenda importa. Um grupo de Ménades, furiosas por se sentirem desprezadas mataram-no e despedaçaram o seu corpo. Lançaram a sua cabeça ao rio Hebro onde flutuou a cantar 'Eurídice'. As nove Musas juntaram as várias partes do seu esquartejado corpo e sepultaram-nas no monte Olimpo.

Hermonax-'Orpheus' death'-attic-(red-figure)-stamnos-ca 470 BC Paris-Musée du Louvre (G 416)

Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)-'death of Orpheus'-drawing-1494 Hamburg-Kunsthalle

Émile Levy (1826-1890)-'death of Orpheus'-oil on canvas-1866 Paris-Musée d'Orsay

Émile-Jean-Baptiste-Philippe Bin (1825-1897)-'death of Orpheus' -1874

Franz Joseph Spiegler (1691-1757)-'Orpheus' death'-fresco-1725 Ottobeuren (Bavaria)-Theatersaal

Descida de Orfeu aos Infernos (Orpheus in the Underworld)

Orfeu tentou recuperar a sua amada no mundo dos mortos. Convenceu Caronte a transporta-lo na sua barca para o outro lado do rio Estige. Com a sua música adormeceu Cérbero, cão de três cabeças, guarda da entrada dos infernos. Hades, deus dos mortos, e Perséfone, sua mulher, atenderam o seu desejo desde que não olhasse para trás. Perdeu-a perto da saída por não cumprir a promessa. Criou o Orfismo, ou serviço de aconselhamento, mas não conseguia resolver os seus próprios problemas.


Orpheus tried to retrieve his beloved from the underworld. He persuaded Charon to carry him in his boat across the river Styx. With the power of his music he forced Cerberus, the three-headed dog, guardian of the entrance to the underworld, to fall asleep. Hades, god of the dead, and Persephone, his wife, would comply with Orpheus’s wish provided that he did not look back. He lost Eurydice near the exit for not fulfilling the promise. He created the Orphism, or counseling service, but could not solve his own problems.

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (1796-1875)-'Orpheus leading Eurydice from the underworld'-oil on canvas-1861 Houston (Texas)-Museum of Fine Art

Jean Restout II (1692-1768)-'Orpheus in the underworld reclaiming Eurydice'-oil on canvas-1763 Paris-Musée du Louvre

François Perrier (ca 1600-1650)-'Orpheus before Pluto and Proserpine'-oilon canvas Paris-Musée du Louvre

Pieter Paul Rubens (1577-1640)-'Orpheus leads Eurydice out of the Hades'-oil on canvas-1635 Madrid-Museo del Prado

Jan Velvet Brueghel, the elder (1568-1622)-'Orpheus in the underworld'-oil on copper Firenze-Palazzo Pitti (Galeria Palatina)

Orfeu e Eurídice (Orpheus and Eurydice)

Orfeu apaixonou-se pela bela Eurídice. O apicultor Aristeu agradou-se dela e passou a persegui-la. Durante uma das tentativas de Aristeu para agarrar a jovem esta tropeçou numa serpente venenosa e recebeu picada mortal.

Orpheus fell in love with the beautiful Eurydice. The beekeeper Aristaeus was attracted to her and started to chase her. During one of Aristaeus’ attempts to grab the young nymph, she stumbled into a poisonous snake and suffered a deadly bite.

Unknown (5th century BC)-'Hermes, Orpheus and Eurydice'-marble relief-roman copy Paris-Musée du Louvre

Edmund Dulac (1882-1953)-'Orpheus and Eurydice'-watercolour and gouache on paper Private collection

George Frederick Watts (1817-1904)-'Orpheus and Eurydice-oil on canvas Private collection

Arno Breker (20th century)-'Orpheus and Eurydice-relief-1944

Auguste Rodin (1840-1917)-'Orpheus and Eurydice'-marble relief-(1887-1893) New York-Metropolitan Museum of Art

Orfeu e a lira (Orpheus playing lyre)

Orfeu, filho de Apolo e da ninfa Calíope, além de poeta foi o músico mais talentoso mencionado nas lendas gregas. Ao tocar a lira, oferecida pelo pai, as aves e os animais selvagens rodeavam-no para o escutar. Participou com Jasão na campanha dos Argonautas. Apaixonou-se por Eurídice.

Orpheus, son of Apollo and of the nymph Calliope, besides being a poet, was the most talented musician mentioned in Greek legends. When he played the lyre, offered by his father, birds and wild animals got around him to listen. He participated with Jason in the Argonauts campaign. He fell in love with Eurydice.

Attr. To the painter of London 497-(bell-crater)-attic-(red-figure)-ca 440 BC-'Orpheus playing his lyre for Thracian man' New York-Metropolitan Museum of Art

Anonymous--'Christ as Orpheus'-mural Roma-Catacomba di Santi Marcellino e Pietro (Orpheus, tanning the wild beasts with his lyre, symbolized the peaceful sway of Christ)

Unknown-'Orpheus with the lyre and surrounded by beasts'-ivory relief Athens-Byzantine and Christian Museums

Hans Leu, the younger (ca 1490-ca 1531)-'Orpheus and the animals'-oil on canvas-1519 Basel-Kunstmuseum

Marcello Provenzale (1575-1639)-'Orpheus'-tempera on canvas Roma-Galleria di Villa Borghese