Hans Rottenhammer

The nymph Callisto (ancient Greek for “most beautiful”) promised Diana, the goddess of hunting, that she would remain a virgin. However, she broke her vow when Jupiter approached her in the guise of Diana and slept with her. When Diana later discovered that she was pregnant, she was cast out and turned into a bear by Juno, Jupiter’s jealous wife. Jupiter subsequently placed Callisto among the stars to form the Great Bear constellation. This ambivalent account from Ovid’s Metamorphoses (vol. II, pp. 401–532) – was it not a case of rape rather than seduction? – proved highly popular among 16th century painters. Titian’s iconic version of this didactic work of erotic love and jealousy that he painted around 1566 is now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. Rottenhammer explored the subject several times in the course of his artistic career, for instance in a painting he made in 1602, which is now in Copenhagen (Statens Museum for Kunst) and in a picture in Brussels (Musées royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique). In both these versions Callisto is shown standing at the centre of the composition coyly covering her private parts with her right hand.

The present fluid and very accurate drawing full of Italianate grace and elegance probably arose during Rottenhammer’s late period. The coyness shown by the winsome young woman is rendered with fine psychological sensitivity. With her right hand she reaches for the mantle that hid her nakedness. The deferential forward inclination of her head, her slightly bent posture and the twisting of her abdomen evoke her sense of shame, inner turmoil and resignation.

18.000 €