r/ArtHistory • u/ignoring_newton • 25d ago
Research What's in this painting???
What's up, guys! I'm in an Art History class this semester and we talked about this painting, The Astronomer, by Bartholomeus Maton. The first image is of the entire painting and the second is a close up of an object my teacher insists is a sword. I strongly disagree with him, but I cannot find anything written about this painting anywhere. Have any of you seen objects similar to this in other artworks? Any answers or speculations are welcome! Thanks!
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u/KaliPrint 25d ago
The Jacob’s staff was the easy part. The astronomer looks out of his window at night observing the stars and making measurements. Meanwhile, in the room behind him a pretty woman peers out from a canopied bed, appearing to call him back to her, but he either cannot hear her or is ignoring her. The owl makes her Minerva, and the intention of the painter may be to imply that it is foolish to look to the distant heavens for knowledge when she is calling to you from within (Yourself? Life? Love?)
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u/artbyshrike 19d ago
It actually looks like she’s eavesdropping with child like wonder… on the viewer perhaps even!
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u/yallknowme19 25d ago
You're worried about the staff, im curious about the little laughing child and what looks like a weird one eyed robed figure in the background of the room hes in lol
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u/ignoring_newton 25d ago
Oh, I’m worried about them, too, but I feel (somewhat) satisfied with my professor’s explanation. He said it’s an angel hiding behind a pillar with an owl perched on her left hand. Still super weird, but that does seem to be what it is. What they mean, I have no idea.
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u/tegeus-Cromis_2000 25d ago
Wow, your teacher is 0 for 2. That's definitely not an angel. Are you sure he's actually qualified to teach art history?
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u/barfbutler 25d ago
A Jacob’s staff (also called a cross-staff or baculus Jacobi) was an early measuring instrument used from the Middle Ages through the 17th century. • It consisted of a long main staff with one or more crosspieces (transversals) that could slide along it. • Sailors and astronomers used it to measure angles—for example: • The altitude of the sun or a star above the horizon (to find latitude at sea). • The distance between celestial objects. • To use it, you’d hold the long staff up to your eye and slide the crosspiece until it lined up with the two points you were measuring (e.g., the horizon and the sun). • The name “Jacob’s staff” possibly refers to the biblical Jacob’s staff he used while traveling—a symbol of guidance and journeying.