Jupiter with a thunderbolt 1585 - 1615

Girolamo Campagna crafted this bronze sculpture of Jupiter in the late 16th or early 17th century. The god strides forward, clutching a bundle of thunderbolts—symbols of his power and dominion over the heavens. Beside him, an eagle, the king of birds and Jupiter’s familiar, perches alertly. Consider how this iconography reverberates through time. The thunderbolt, a visual shorthand for divine authority, appears not only in classical depictions of Jupiter, but echoes in later representations of lightning and power. We see it mirrored in the raised fist of revolutionary figures, or the graphic representation of electricity. Such symbols tap into deep, subconscious fears and desires, evoking a sense of awe and control. This sculpture, through its careful rendering of symbols, serves as a potent reminder of how images carry meaning, adapting and evolving to resonate with new generations.