Ercole in Tebe, Festa Teatrale rappresentata in Firenze per le reali Nozze ... Cosimo Terzo ...e Margherita Luisa lll 1661

Giovanni Andrea Moniglia created this engraving of Ercole in Tebe for the wedding of Cosimo the Third in Florence. Observe the columns, a clear symbol of classical antiquity, which frame the stage where Hercules performs his labors. This motif of the column, reaching towards the heavens, laden with symbolic carvings, echoes through time. From the pillars of ancient temples dedicated to gods, such as the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, to the triumphal columns of Rome commemorating imperial victories. The column form is re-encoded during the Renaissance as a symbol of stability and strength. These columns, intertwined with flora, remind me of the entwined serpents on the caduceus, a symbol of medicine and commerce. The act of intertwining itself, a visual representation of unity and duality, recurs throughout art. As we contemplate Moniglia’s work, remember that cultural memory shapes our perceptions. Symbols are not static. They are continuously reinterpreted. The column in Moniglia’s work is but one point in an ongoing cycle.