Allegory of Summer
Pietro Testa Italian
Not on view
In this elaborate allegory, one of a set of four representing the seasons, the winged figure on the ground at lower right symbolizes the soul unable to escape the bondage of time and the effects of the elements on humanity. The scorching summer has dried up the rivers, though Juno, in the air above the hero, is squeezing rain from the clouds, providing hope of relief. Apollo, framed by the sun at the high point of the heavens, also provides help: he is drawing an arrow in order to shoot down the drought-borne pestilence on the earth.
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