Minerva, or Liberty

[zafra52]

This is the name of the masterpiece by Paul Du Bois, which is at the Brussels City Museum. It is an allegory of freedom, and it was inspired by the Roman goddess of wisdom. Paul Du Bois used precious materials like ivory, silver and copper to embellish his representation. It is also a fine example of Art Nouveau and symbolism: the two major artistic movements in Brussels and abroad, at the turn of the 20th century.



Regards

[gstark]

Wow.

Is it just me, or do the cracks in the face look a little like tears ?

The use of precious materials in artworks is amazing.

[zafra52]

Thanks Gary.

I think you are right. All I could think when looking at the photo is the amount of dead elephants that took to carve such a piece; it is quite large. Nevertheless it is a remarkable piece of art.

[gstark]

the amount of dead elephants that took to carve such a piece

I'm reminded of the https://belzmuseum.org/ in downtown Memphis, where they have hand carved woolly mammoth tusks. The work involved in these ancient treasures is unimaginable.

[zafra52]

Thank you, Gary. For what I see in the page it has very rare pieces of art. that Chinese garden and those horses are superb. Thank you for sharing.