
Sur la statue d’Amour.
CONTRADICTION.
Que c’est Amour, Poëtes hont dict vers
Qui ses beaulx faictz monstrent soubz noms, divers
Tous sont d’accord, qu’il soit petit. estant
Aveugle & nud aeles, & traictz portant.
Tel ilz le font. Mais contre espritz si haulx
(Si parler jose:) Il me semble estre faulx. Link to an image of this page [I6r p139]Car Pourquoy nud? Comme si robe munde
N’heust point celluy qui ha tous biens du monde?
Comme se peut l’enfant nud garentir
De Bize, & nege es mons, sans froid sentir?[1]
L’appellez vous enfant? qui passe en eage
(Comme Hesiode[2] escript) Nestor[3] le sage?
Quel inconstant? Qui obstiné envis
Laisse les coeurs qu’il ha prins & raviz?
Charge inutile il porte, arc, & carquois.
L’enfant peut il bender ung arc turquois?
Aeles il ha: & ne peut hault voler,
Ne les oyseaux de ses traictz affoller.
Les coeurs humains il va blessant par terre,
Ne se bougeant de la plus qu’une pierre.
Si aveugle est: Que luy sert une bande?
En voit il moins? Cela je vous demande.
Mais qui croiroit ung aveugle estre archer?
Qui rien ne voit à droict ne peult lascher.
S’il est de Feu, & porte flambe: Comme
Vit il encor? veu que feu tout consomme?
Ou que n’est il par les ondes estainct,
Quand les coeurs molz des Naiades attainct?[4]
Pour n’estre doncque de telz erreurs deceu,
Que c’est Amour, par mes vers sera sceu. Link to an image of this page [I6v p140]C’est ung travail plaisant, oyseux manoir.
Ses armes sont, Gland rouge, en escu noir.
En cest Embleme est refutée, & con-
tredicte comme faulse, & impossible,
la Poéticque description d’Amour, & en
fin baillée la vraye definition d’icelluy,
avec le blazon de ses armes faulses, qui
sont à ung gland de gueulles, en champ
de fable: Le gland rouge signifie le
bout du membre viril resemblant ung
gland, & pource des Grecz appellé βάλα-
νος
Balanos. Le champ, ou l’escu noir,
est la partie honteuse de la femme, ou
communement il faict brun.
1. ‘snows and North wind’. These are traditional hardships endured by the hopeful lover who finds the door shut against him. See e.g. Horace, Odes 3.10.
2. the poet Hesiod who, at Theogony 120, describes Love as a primeval cosmic force.
3. Nestor, king of Pylos, who had outlived three generations of men, was a proverbial example of extreme old age.
4. ‘the...hearts of the Water Nymphs’: a reference to the many legends of water nymphs and other water spirits succumbing to love
Related Emblems
Iconclass Keywords
Relating to the image:
- (high) hill [25H113] Search | Browse Iconclass
- (personifications and symbolic representations of) Love; 'Amore (secondo Seneca)' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [56F2(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- (story of) Cupid, Amor (Eros) (+ variant) [92D1(+0)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- arm bent behind the back [31A25171] Search | Browse Iconclass
- arm held downwards (+ holding something) [31A2515(+933)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bent legs extended forwards or backwards, with knee or foot placed on an elevation (+ standing) [31A2622(+51)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- boy (child between toddler and youth) (+ nude human being) [31D11221(+89)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- clouds [26A] Search | Browse Iconclass
- fruits: pomegranate (+ heraldic plants) [25G21(POMEGRANATE)(+12)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- groups of birds (+ flying animal(s)) [25F31(+5262)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- groups of plants (herbs) [25G13] Search | Browse Iconclass
- groups of trees [25G11] Search | Browse Iconclass
- head slanting to the right [31A246] Search | Browse Iconclass
- looking sideways [31B6213] Search | Browse Iconclass
- mouth slightly open [31B6232] Search | Browse Iconclass
- pomegranate ~ ornament [48A98321] Search | Browse Iconclass
- prospect of city, town panorama, silhouette of city [25I12] Search | Browse Iconclass
- protective weapons: shield [45C19(SHIELD)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- river [25H213] Search | Browse Iconclass
- specific aspects of Cupid [92D17] Search | Browse Iconclass
Relating to the text:
- Ambivalence [51BB51] Search | Browse Iconclass
- animals wings of an animal [25F(+342)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- archer's weapons (with NAME) [45C15(BOW)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- blind, blindness [31A4111] Search | Browse Iconclass
- blindfold [31A3191] Search | Browse Iconclass
- colours, pigments, and paints: black [22C4(BLACK)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- flame [41B121] Search | Browse Iconclass
- flying [31A2762] Search | Browse Iconclass
- heart [31A2221] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Inconstancy; 'Incostanza', 'Instabilità', 'Instabilità overo Incostanza' (Ripa) [53AA21] Search | Browse Iconclass
- male persons from classical history (with NAME) representations to which the NAME of a person from classical history may be attached [98B(HESIOD)3] Search | Browse Iconclass
- mountains [25H11] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Naiads, river- and spring-nymphs; usually carrying an urn; 'Naiadi, ninfe de' fiumi' (Ripa) [92L312] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Nestor [95A(NESTOR)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Obstinacy; 'Ostinatione', 'Pertinacia' (Ripa) [53A211] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Pain, Sorrow, Sadness; 'Dolore', 'Dolore di Zeusi' (Ripa) [56BB1] Search | Browse Iconclass
- piece of sculpture, reproduction of a piece of sculpture [48C24] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Pleasure, Enjoyment, Joy; 'Allegrezza', 'Allegrezza da le medaglie', 'Allegrezza, letitia e giubilo', 'Diletto', 'Piacere', 'Piacere honesto' (Ripa) [56B1] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Pleasure, Enjoyment, Joy; 'Allegrezza', 'Allegrezza da le medaglie', 'Allegrezza, letitia e giubilo', 'Diletto', 'Piacere', 'Piacere honesto' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [56B1(+4):56F2(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- snow [26D1] Search | Browse Iconclass
- winds [26C] Search | Browse Iconclass
- writer, poet, author [48C91] Search | Browse Iconclass
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