Emblem 48

Emblem 48

Bacchus disguised as Hercules with lion's skin and clubAI-generated

Difficile est de changer sa nature.

It is difficult to change one's nature.AI-generated

Description of the woodcutAI-generated

A woodcut in a rectangular frame. At the left stands a tall, ornate two-handled vase or ewer on a base. In the centre a nude male figure with curly hair and a wreath wears a lion's skin over his shoulders, the lion's head and forepaws hanging at his sides; he holds a knotted club across his body in one hand and raises a shallow cup or bowl in the other. Below and in front of him a small naked child-like figure (putto) stands bending forward, and at the right grow leafy vine branches with clusters of grapes. The ground is indicated by tufts of grass and foliage.

Subscriptio

Facsimile page of emblem 48 — Facsimile of the page (Herzog August Bibliothek); click to enlarge.

TranscriptionAI-generated

BAcchus voulant Hercules contrefaire,Se reuestit de la peau d'vn Lyon,Mais il ne sceut si bonne troigne faire,Que de brocardz il n'eust vn million.Il ne fault point, selon l'opinionDes Anciens, son naturel deffaire:Le Fol peult bien du Sage contrefaire:Mais qu'au parler ne se monstre estre sot:Le Foyble aussi peult bien du Vaillant faire,Et triumpher, mais qu'on ne luy dye mot.

TranslationAI-generated

Bacchus, wishing to imitate Hercules, clothed himself in the skin of a lion; but he could not put on so good a face that he did not get a million mockeries for it. One must not, according to the opinion of the Ancients, undo one's nature: the Fool may well play the Sage, provided that in speaking he does not show himself to be a fool; the Weak man too may well play the Valiant, and triumph, provided no one says a word to him.

Iconclass

86(DIFFICILE EST DE CHANGER SA NATURE) proverbs, sayings, etc. (DIFFICILE EST DE CHANGER SA NATURE)

41A773 container of ceramics: jar, jug, pot, vase

92L18(VINE) attributes of Bacchus: vine

92L1 (story of) Bacchus (Dionysus), Liber

92L18(CUP) attributes of Bacchus (CUP)

94L8(CLUB) attributes of Hercules: club

94L8(LION'S SKIN) attributes of Hercules: lion's skin

32A7 characters (human types)

58B6 Instinct, Natural Disposition; 'Instinto naturale' (Ripa)

Relationships to the Adagia of ErasmusAI-generated

Suggested relationships between this emblem and adages in Erasmus’ Adagia.

III v 98 Leonis exuvium super crocoton – thematic inventiohigh

The emblem's subscriptio retells precisely Erasmus's source story for this adage: Bacchus dressing in Hercules' lion-skin and being laughed at (Aristophanes, Frogs, where Hercules cannot restrain his laughter at the lion-skin over the saffron robe). The woodcut shows exactly this combination of Bacchic attributes (vase, grapes, putto) with lion-skin and club.

I iii 66 Induitis me leonis exuvium – thematic inventiohigh

Erasmus's essay here describes Bacchus equipped like Hercules with lion-skin and club, mocked because such gear does not suit a soft, effeminate character; this is the exact image and moral of the emblem — undertaking or pretending to a role beyond one's nature.

I vi 92 Intra tuam pelliculam te contine – thematic inventiomedium

The adage's lesson — do not forget your own condition and attempt more than your nature allows, illustrated by the ass in the lion's skin unmasked and beaten — matches the emblem's motto 'It is difficult to change one's nature' and its lion-skin disguise exposed by mockery.

I vii 12 Asinus apud Cumanos – thematic inventiolow

Erasmus explicitly recalls the runaway ass that 'posed among the good people of Cumae as a lion'; the emblem's weak man who can pass for valiant only so long as nobody speaks a word to him reproduces this fable's logic of a disguise undone by exposure.

I vii 6 Multi thyrsigeri, pauci bacchi – thematic inventiolow

Erasmus's point that outward insignia (cowl, mitre, beard) do not make the man corresponds to the emblem's closing moral that the fool may look like a sage and the weakling like a hero until speech or trial betrays him; the Bacchic imagery is a further point of contact.

I vii 10 Simia in purpura – thematic inventiolow

Like the ape in purple whose true nature shows through its finery, Bacchus in the lion-skin cannot keep a face convincing enough to escape ridicule; both illustrate that borrowed trappings cannot alter an inborn nature.

III iii 19 Lupus pilum mutat, non mentem – thematic inventiolow

This adage states in proverbial form exactly the emblem's motto, that one changes one's outward coat but not one's inner nature — 'on ne doit point deffaire son naturel'.

Description of the woodcutAI-generated

Subscriptio

TranscriptionAI-generated

TranslationAI-generated

Iconclass

Suggested Iconclass codesAI-generated

Relationships to the Adagia of ErasmusAI-generated

Sources