Netherlandish School, Early 17th Century

This fascinating painting depicts a rare combination of distinct iconographies: two pre-Socratic philosophers, the laughing Democritus at left and the weeping Heraclitus at right, and a terrestrial globe filled with the implements of physical and intellectual work. Though images of Democritus and Heraclitus first emerged in Italy, likely derived from the writings of Marsilio Ficino, the subject gained widespread popularity in the Netherlands around the turn of the seventeenth century.

Contemporary depictions of the pair of philosophers typically include a globe, whereas in the present work the two men flank a cross-topped sphere containing twenty-seven tools arrayed around a central golden crown. From the top they include: a physician’s urine-filled glass flask; blacksmith’s anvil; barber’s scissor and comb; shoemaker’s awl; woven basket and pickaxe, both used for reaping and threshing; sweeper’s broom; coiled rope, used to bundle wheat; cook’s cauldron and earthenware jug; vintner or brewer’s wooden barrel; copper pot with a rope and stick; mariner’s rope fender; woodworker’s axe; farmer’s shovel; glass-blower’s glowing pipe; farmer’s sickle; weaver’s shuttle; tailor’s shears; inn-keeper’s tankard; sweeper’s brush; perhaps a cleric’s silver vessel; painter’s palette, brushes, and maulstick; engraver’s burin; baker’s gingerbread mold; carpenter’s chisel; and scholar’s book.

The central orb reflects the rise of the working professional class in Northern Europe, where the Protestant ethos of hard work leading to a virtuous life was widespread. The very idea of labor possessing value, both in monetary terms and as a way of pursuing a meaningful and devout life, emerged at this moment.