Several winged figures in flight, and a figure with a spear 

This drawing of winged figures and a spear-wielding figure was made by Peter Paul Rubens, a leading artist of the Baroque period. It exemplifies the era's dynamic composition and idealized human forms, yet its cultural significance is deeply rooted in the social and institutional structures of 17th-century Europe. The image, with its classical allusions, creates meaning through visual codes of power and divinity. Made during the Baroque era in Europe, its composition might be influenced by the Catholic Church's patronage of the arts and the era's political landscape, where art often served as a tool for conveying authority. Rubens, as a court painter, was keenly aware of the socio-political function of art. The drawing, although seemingly about classical heroism, may reflect the social hierarchies of his time. To understand the drawing fully, historians consult period documents, correspondence, and studies of patronage. The meaning of art is contingent on its social and institutional context.