The Rape Of Proserpina
Jan Brueghel the Elder captures the dramatic moment Pluto snatches Proserpina away to the underworld in this dynamic Baroque scene. The god of the dead, wrapped in a billowing red cloak, clutches the struggling goddess as his team of four black horses gallops furiously through a lush, dark landscape. A desperate nymph reaches out from the water's edge, trying in vain to stop the chariot's wheels. This mythological tale explains the changing seasons—Proserpina's annual return to the surface brings spring, while her time in the underworld brings winter. Brueghel's signature attention to detail shines in the frothy water and the expressive faces of the horses.
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