Ezra eet van de bloemen in het veld Possibly 1582 - 1654

Pieter van der Borcht created this engraving, ‘Ezra eating flowers in the field’, now held at the Rijksmuseum. It illustrates a passage from the apocryphal book of Ezra, when the prophet sustains himself in the wilderness. Here, flowers become a potent symbol of survival and divine provision. Eating from the earth is a primal act, seen in various myths. We could draw a parallel to the classical figure of Antaeus, who regained strength from contact with the earth, his mother. It is a symbol of the raw, regenerative power of nature. Yet, the transformation of the life-giving soil into sustenance also carries a strong emotional charge; a melancholic surrender to circumstances that has echoed through art history. Consider, for example, images of hermits or ascetics, living off the land. In each, the act of eating from the earth marks a turning point, a profound moment of introspection and transformation. These images touch something primal, a deep-seated connection to survival, resilience, and the cyclical nature of life and death.