Skip navigation
Vulcan, A8
  • Production Date

    No later than April 1838 - 1861
  • Type of Work / Object

    Sculpture > Statue

Explanation

  • Vulcan is the god of fire and acts as the Olympus blacksmith. We see him with an open tunic during a brief pause from his work, and he has put down his tools. At his feet lie the weapons that it is his task to make for gods and heroes. The god of war, Mars, is naturally one of those who take most weapons from him, but it is Vulcan’s tragedy that Mars is his rival at the same time. For Mars is having an affair with Vulcan’s wife, the beautiful Venus. So if melancholy seems to have taken over the hard-working smith, this might be the reason.