24 JOACHIM WTEWAEL Dutch, 1566­1638 Mars and Venus Surprised by Vulcan, 1606­10 Oil on copper 20.25x 15.5 cm (8 x 6 in.) At bottom right, signed JOACHIMWTEN/WAEL FECIT 83.PC.274 This enchanting painting on copper, one of the Museum's smallest and most precious, depicts a story from Ovid's Metamorphoses in which Vulcan, in the company of other gods, surprises his wife, Venus, who is in bed with Mars. Vulcan, on the right, removes the net of bronze, which he had forged to trap the adulterous pair, while Cupid and Apollo hover above, drawing back the canopy. Mercury, standing near Vulcan, looks up gleefully toward Diana while Saturn, sitting on a cloud near her, smiles wickedly as he gazes down on the cuckolded husband. Jupiter, in the sky at the top, appears to have just arrived. Through an opening in the bed hangings, Vulcan can be seen a second time in the act of forging his net. Mythological themes of this kind were especially popular during the sixteenth century, when interest in the classical world reached a peak. This rendering of the infamous legend of Mars and Venus exemplifies the Dutch fascination with human misbehavior, particularly scenes of lecherous misconduct; Wtewael here anticipates the earthy humor of the later seventeenth century. The use of copper as a support for paintings was especially widespread during the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. The very hard and polished surface lent itself to small, highly finished and detailed pictures. Copper was well suited for the present picture, since it allowed for subtler gradations of tone and greater intensity of color than canvas. Fortunately, the painting is in perfect condition and virtually as brilliant as the day it was painted. Due to the erotic subject matter, it may have been kept hidden, and hence protected, over the years. The Museum's painting was probably the one commissioned by Joan van Weely, a jeweler from Amsterdam. BF 48 DUTCH AND FLEMISH SCHOOLS