Portret van Hendrick Goltzius 1617 - 1645

This portrait of Hendrick Goltzius is a 17th-century engraving filled with symbols of mortality and artistic accomplishment. Goltzius is framed by an oval cartouche, decorated with fruit, tools of the artist's trade, and at the bottom, an hourglass emblematic of the fleeting nature of time. The hourglass is a recurring motif throughout art history; we can see it in medieval vanitas paintings as a reminder of death, or even earlier in ancient Roman art as a symbol of temporality. Its continued use reflects a universal preoccupation with time's relentless march, deeply embedded in our cultural memory. The hourglass is not merely a measure of time but a vessel of our collective anxieties. Here, the artist uses these objects to engage viewers on a subconscious level, reminding us of the power of art to both transcend time and confront our mortality. Over time, the hourglass has resurfaced, evolving to take on new meanings in different historical contexts.