As in Art. So in Life.

Minerva Vicotorious over Ignorance

Perhaps the most famous work of the Kunstkammer,  Bartholomeus Spranger's Minerva Victorious over Ignorance, depicts the goddess of wisdom surrounded by allegories of science and art.

Rudolf's reign was fruitful for the sciences and the arts, and the collection of the Kunstkammer highlights the Emperor's affinity for both disciplines.

Aligning with contemporary humanist thought, in 1595 Rudolf released an official proclamation declaring that painting would henseforth be considered a liberal art, not a craft. Minerva, goddess of wisdom, was an image that came to represent the intelligence of the art produced by the Rudolfine court artists. Her image went on to become the symbol of the Arts Guild. Made with this brewing ideology and the wants of his patron in mind, Spranger's Minerva Triumphs over Ignorance, highlights the flourishing of the arts and sciences under Rudolf's reign and his role as protector and patron of the art and sciences. 

The two half figures by the bottom edge are thought to be Bellona (goddess of war) and History. Between 1593 and 1595, the imperial armies achieved several significant successes against the Turks. A subject that would continue to be repeated in the works of the court artists. 

Von Aachen depicts the moment before battle. In the war scene below, Emperor Rudolf II (Left) smiles and holds out a hand to a Turk (right). In the sky above the scene, Jupiter, ruler of the gods, is seated on a cloud with an eagle by his side. His held out hand and arm mimic that of the Emperor directly below. Beside Jupiter, Minerva, goddess of wisdom, shakes hands with Mars, god of war. 

The scene links Rudolf II with the divine and mighty rule of Jupiter. Connecting Rudolf's reign to wisdom and the promise of sucess in war.

This propagandic image is not uncommon in the works of the Kunstkammer and von Aachen would go on to produce multiple drawings of this scene. The connection between Rudolf and Jupiter is a powerful one and one that played a key role in the curation of the Kunstkammer. Karel van Mander spoke of a lavish decoration by Pauwel Vredeman de Vreis on a ceiling of one of the rooms in the Kunstkammer. The decoration showed Jupiter in the midst of the four elements and the twelve months of the year, residing over the collection of the Kunstkammer.