

480
1
by
Anonymous
Portrait of the Poet Homer
1639
The old man honored by a laurel wreath is Homer, the greatest poet of antiquity, identified by the inscription on the sheet of paper with the names of the cities that claimed Homer as a native. This imaginary portrait (no one knows what he looked like) is not so much a celebration of the author of the early Greek epic poems- The Iliad and The Odyssey- but of the fame that a poet could achieve. This splendid painting is dated but not signed. The forceful modeling suggests a Flemish painter influenced by Caravaggio (Italian, 1571-1610).
- Size:
- H: 28 3/8 x W: 22 3/8 in. (72.1 x 56.8 cm)
- Medium:
- oil on panel
- License:
- Courtesy of the Walters Art Museum
- For more:
- https://art.thewalters.org/detail/35475/portrait-of-the-poe…
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