Emblem 58

Emblem 58

A man with spear and knife before a lion caught in a netAI-generated

L'espoir qu'est vain, met l'homme en seruitude.

Hope that is vain puts man into servitude.AI-generated

Description of the woodcutAI-generated

A woodcut in a rectangular frame showing a rocky, mountainous landscape. At the left a bearded man wearing a plumed cap and short tunic stands facing right, holding a long spear or pike in one hand and a knife or short blade in the other. Before him, at the centre and right of the scene, crouches a maned lion caught in a net whose meshes spread over its body and across the ground; the lion's head is turned toward the man with mouth open, its tail curling up behind. Hills, rocky outcrops and a few bushes fill the background.

Subscriptio

Facsimile page of emblem 58 — Facsimile of the page (Herzog August Bibliothek); click to enlarge.

TranscriptionAI-generated

HOmme qui ha pour viure à l'aduantage,Et suyt la Court pour gloire & vanité,Semble au Lyon, qui se rend en seruage,Qui d'vn filet est en captiuité:Pour peu de cas est en perplexité,Ou il pourroit en liberté se mettre,Il ayme mieulx estre Valet, que Maistre:Combien qu'il peult tost rompre le filet.En liberté nature le feit naistre:Mais vain espoir, l'arreste au lieu qu'il est.

TranslationAI-generated

A man who has the advantage for his living, and follows the Court for glory and vanity, is like the Lion that surrenders itself into bondage, which is held captive by a net: for a trifling matter he is in perplexity, whereas he might set himself at liberty; he prefers to be a Servant rather than a Master, although he could quickly break the net. Nature made him to be born in liberty: but vain hope keeps him in the place where he is.

Iconclass

86(L'ESPOIR QU'EST VAIN, MET L'HOMME EN SERUITUDE) proverbs, sayings, etc. (L'ESPOIR QU'EST VAIN, MET L'HOMME EN SERUITUDE)

31D14 adult man

45C11(SPEAR) casting weapons: spear

45C13(SWORD) hacking and thrusting weapons: sword

25F23(LION) beasts of prey, predatory animals: lion

25F23(LION)(+82) beasts of prey, predatory animals: lion (+ domestic animals)

44B152 royal household; courtiers, retinue, train

51EE2 Inferiority

51EE11 Restriction, Limitation

Suggested Iconclass codesAI-generated

Additional codes proposed for this emblem, not (yet) part of the indexing.

43C111232 lion hunthigh

The scene shows a lion trapped in a hunting net with an armed man confronting it, which matches 'lion hunt'.

43C1112321 hunter fighting a lionhigh

The bearded man with pike and blade standing over the snarling, netted lion directly corresponds to 'hunter fighting a lion'.

43C114 huntermedium

The armed figure with spear, knife and plumed cap is a 'hunter' as a generic figure type in the scene.

43C1142 hunters huntinglow

The depiction shows a hunter actively engaged in the hunt, loosely fitting 'hunters hunting', though only one hunter is present.

Relationships to the Adagia of ErasmusAI-generated

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

IV v 73 Leo cordula vinctus – thematic inventiohigh

The emblem's image of a lion held by a flimsy net it could easily break, and its application to the man who follows the court 'pour gloire & vanité' and so 'se rend en seruage', reproduces exactly Erasmus's adage from Lucian's De mercede conductis: a great creature bound by a thread, paraded at court because a tiny advantage binds him to the prince.

IV v 91 Cum sarcinis enatare – thematic inventiomedium

Erasmus glosses 'no one swims to shore with his baggage' as meaning no one regains liberty unless he despises the rewards of servitude; the subscriptio's lion, who stays bound 'pour peu de cas' though he could break the net and be free, makes the same point about courtly servitude.

II iv 5 Spem precio emere – thematic inventiomedium

Erasmus applies this adage specifically to those who, 'lured by the hope of very great results, curry favour with princes', paying with their time and freedom; the emblem's motto that vain hope enslaves the courtier is the same moral.

V i 24 Argentum accepi, dote imperium vendidi – thematic inventiolow

The adage's maxim 'accept a favour and lose your liberty' matches the emblem's courtier who prefers 'estre Valet, que Maistre' for the sake of a small advantage, though there is no textual borrowing.

IV iii 5 Inani spe flagrat – thematic inventiolow

The motto 'L'espoir qu'est vain' echoes the commonplace of empty hopes (κεναῖσιν ἐλπίσι) that keep a foolish man fixed where he is, though the emblem adds the specific lion-and-net imagery not found here.