Ceres and Bacchus1600s · Study 1916.805

Context from the museum

This painting is a copy of a print by Jan Harmensz Muller (Dutch, 1571–1628), originally based on a painting by Spranger. Spranger often used the iconography of Ceres and Bacchus, two important agricultural deities. Muller's print has the Latin inscription Sine Cerere et Bacchio friget Venus , which translates to "without Ceres and Bacchus, Venus grows cold." The motto indicates that Love, represented by Venus, is impossible without the nourishment of food and drink, as the deities of grain and wine walk hand in hand.

Museum description reproduced from its CC0 open-access record. Read the original catalog entry.

Read the dimensions before the image

The selected unframed measurement for Ceres and Bacchus is 100 cm wide and 163.5 cm high, equivalent to approximately 39.4 × 64.4 inches. Dividing width by height gives a format ratio of 0.61:1. The rectangular bounding area is 1.64 square meters; it describes the measured footprint, not the amount of paint or the monetary value.

On an illustrative 300 cm wall, the recorded width occupies 33.3% of the span before adding a frame. A centered placement leaves approximately 100.0 cm on each side before adding a frame. These are calculations by Physical Art For Crypto using museum measurements. They are not the museum’s display recommendations.

Questions to bring to your own collection

With Ceres and Bacchus in view, identify one feature you can point to, then distinguish what the museum records from your personal response. Keep its medium, oil on canvas, in your notes when comparing contemporary works.

• Which part of this vertical composition catches your eye first?
• Would a 100 cm width still suit the space after allowing for furniture and a frame?
• What surface detail would you need to see in person or in a close photograph?