Section: FORTUNE. View all emblems in this section.

Fortune surmontant Vertu.
Quand Brut vincu veit Fortune faillie,
En sang civil undoyant Pharsalie:
Ja se voulant mettre l’espée au corps,
De voix hardie escrya telz recors:
Povre vertu en seulz dictz oportune,
Pourquoy suys tu es faictz dame Fortune?[1]
Brutus noble citoyen Rommain homme tresconstant, &
vertueux, apres avoir occis Jule Caesar, & soubzstenu tant
qu’il peut la liberte publicque contre Octave Cesar, fina-
lement se voyant du tout defaict avec sa partie, à la jour-
née de Pharsaille: ne voulut vif venir en la puissance de
son ennemy, Mais se tua luy mesme, avec le regret cy
Link to an image of this page [K2v p148]
dessus escript, deplorant que es choses humaines Fortune
ha plus de puissance & domination que vertu. Ce que
l’on voit tous les jours avenir tellement que les vertueux,
sont subjectz aulx bienfortunez.
1. After the assassination of Julius Caesar, Brutus and Cassius became the leaders of the Republican cause. The Caesarean troops, led by Mark Antony and Octavian, Caesar’s heir, defeated them in 42 BC in two battles at Philippi in Macedonia. (Pharsalus in Thessaly was the site of the battle in 48 BC in which Julius Caesar had defeated Pompey in a previous round of the Civil Wars. Pharsalia is here loosely used, as in the Roman poets, to refer to both sites of similar civil conflict.) For Brutus’ suicide after the defeat, see the end of Plutarch’s Life of Brutus.
Related Emblems

- Emblematum liber (28th February, 1531), Augsburg: FORTUNA VIRTUTEM superans.
- Emblematum liber (6th April, 1531), Augsburg: FORTUNA VIRTUTEM superans.
- Emblematum liber (1534), Augsburg: FORTUNA VIRTUTEM superans.
- Emblematum libellus (1534), Paris: Fortuna virtutem superans.
- Livret des emblemes (1536), Paris: Fortuna virtutem superans. Fortune surmontant Vertu.
- Les Emblemes (1539), Paris: Fortuna virtutem superans. Fortune surmontant Vertu.
- Les Emblemes (1542), Paris: Fortuna virtutem superans. Fortune surmontant Vertu.
- Emblematum libellus (1542), Paris: Fortuna virtutem superans. Gluck herschend uber frumbkeyt.
- Los Emblemas (1549), Lyon: Que a las vezes la fortaleza es vencida de la Fortuna.
- Emblemata (1550), Lyon: Fortuna, Virtutem superans.
- Emblemata (1551), Lyon: Fortuna, Virtutem superans.
- Diverse imprese (1551), Lyon: La virtù vinta dalla fortuna.
- Emblematum libri II (Stockhamer) (1556), Lyon: Fortuna virtutem superans.
- Toutes les emblemes (1558), Lyon: Fortune surmontant Vertu.
- Liber emblematum ... Kunstbuch (1567), Franckfurt am Main: Fortuna virtutem superans. Das Glück das die Tugend uberwindt.
- Emblemata / Les emblemes (1584), Paris: Fortuna virtutem superans. Fortune surmontant vertu.
- Emblemata (1591), Leiden: Fortuna virtutem superans.
- Declaracion magistral sobre las Emblemas de Andres Alciato (1615), Najera: FORTUNA VIRTUTEM SUPERANS.
- Les emblemes (1615), Geneva/Cologny: Fortune surmontant Vertu.
- Emblemata (1621), Padua: Fortuna virtutem superans.
Hint: You can set whether related emblems are displayed by default on the preferences page
Iconclass Keywords
Relating to the image:
- adult man [31D14] Search | Browse Iconclass
- arm stretched sidewards - AA - both arms or hands [31AA2513] Search | Browse Iconclass
- armour [45C22] Search | Browse Iconclass
- beard [31A534] Search | Browse Iconclass
- blood [31A22611] Search | Browse Iconclass
- clouds [26A] Search | Browse Iconclass
- falling (+ forward) [31A2731(+61)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- gear for legs and feet (+ men's clothes) [41D233(+81)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- hacking and thrusting weapons: sword [45C13(SWORD)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- helmet [45C221] Search | Browse Iconclass
- looking over the shoulder [31A247] Search | Browse Iconclass
- mask, mascaron ~ ornament [48A98211] Search | Browse Iconclass
- mountains [25H11] Search | Browse Iconclass
- prospect of city, town panorama, silhouette of city [25I12] Search | Browse Iconclass
- protective weapons: shield [45C19(SHIELD)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- rock-formations [25H1123] Search | Browse Iconclass
- rocky coast [25H131] Search | Browse Iconclass
- sea (seascape) [25H23] Search | Browse Iconclass
- standing on one leg, the other leg backwards, straight (+ leaning) [31A26251(+52)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- trees (+ stem, trunk) [25G3(+21)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- violent death by sword (+ seeking death, suicide) [31E234631(+7)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Relating to the text:
- (story of) Marcus Junius Brutus death of person from classical history [98B(BRUTUS, M.J.)68] Search | Browse Iconclass
- geographical names of countries, regions, mountains, rivers, etc. (names of cities and villages excepted) (with NAME) [61D(PHARSALIA)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Luck, Fortune, Lot; 'Fato', 'Fortuna', 'Fortuna aurea', 'Fortuna buona', 'Fortuna pacifica overo clemente', 'Sorte' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [54F12(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Virtuousness; 'Amor di Virtù', 'Attione virtuosa', 'Guida sicura de' veri honori', 'Virtù', 'Virtù insuperabile' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [57A6(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Hint: You can turn translations and name underlining on or off using the preferences page.