Moses van Uyttenbroeck

Anonymous sale, Zurich, Schuler, 12 June 2024, lot 3203 (as Attributed to Moses van Uyttenbroek);

Where acquired by the present owner.

The somewhat rare subject of Salmacis and Hermaphroditus derives from Ovid's Metamorphoses. In Ovid's story, Salmacis, a female nymph, becomes infatuated with Hermaphroditus, the remarkably beautiful son of Aphrodite and Hermes, who spurns her romantic advances. Salmacis pretends to leave, only to spy on him from behind a tree as he undresses and bathes in a woodland pond. Overcome by desire at the sight of Hermaphroditus's naked form, she leaps from her hiding place to forcibly embrace him. As he struggles to escape her grasp, Salmacis calls upon the gods to bind them together for eternity. Here Uyttenbroeck depicts the moment that her plea is answered, as their bodies merge into a single androgynous form.