View of Tempe in Thessalia by Abraham Ortelius Published 1590
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Fine example of Abraham Ortelius' view of the mythical paradise of Tempe in Thessaly, Greece.
Located at the foot of Mount Olympus, this valley was known as the playground of the gods. The Pineios River, named after the river god Peneus, curves through the valley, separating Macedonian lands and Thessaly lands. On the banks, Bay Laurel trees grow, whose aromatic leaves were used in chaplets to crown the victors of the Pythian Games.
The view features scenes of merry-making, feasting, and dancing, but with the striking and prominent mountain peaks. Tempe also alludes to the power of the gods. Moreover, with an engraved temple and alter of Jupiter featured, Ortelius' Tempe is truly a nod to the mythical, magical, and fabled. The view was based on information from ancient sources, specifically, the writings of Ovidius, Athenaeus, Plinius, Herodotus, and Aelianus.
Color: Hand Color
Size: 18 x 21.6 inches
Source: Theatrum Orbis Terrarum
Description: Views are a rarity in the historical atlas by Ortelius. Even then, one would have expected an illustration of antique Jerusalem, Athens or Rome, but this was not the case. This illustration combines myth and reality. The Tempe Valley really exists and it forms a 10 km gap around River Pineios (after the God Peneus), which separates Thessaly of Macedonia.
Enthroned above Mount Olympus, we find the seat of Zeus and the Greek gods. Mount Olympus rising to 2.918 meters is the highest mountain of current-day Greece. The origin of the name “Olympus” is unknown and it is probably pre-Greek. Homer refers to Mount Olympus as the seat of the Greek Gods (in general terms) and not to an identifiable or specific location. On the mountain peak and in the valley Ortelius shows the altar and the temple of Apollo, son of Zeus. Ortelius refers to “Jovis ara” or Jupiter, the Roman counterpart of Zeus.
In ancient times, it was celebrated by Greek poets as a favorite haunt of Apollo and the Muses. The paradise of Tempe was an historical place of culture, care and lust. On the river banks grows the laurel tree, whose leaves were used to make the victory wreath for the winners at the Pythian games in Delphi. Ortelius drew his data for this view from Ovid, Herodotus, Aelian, Plinius, Herodotus and Varro. Ortelius incorporated this sight for the first time in 1590, but this print comes from the Latin version of B. Vrients from 1609.
In the lower right corner, the brilliantly decorated cartouche reads:
“Est nemus Æmoniæ prærupta quod undiqß claudit | Silva, vocant Tempe, per quæ Peneus ab imo | Effusus Pindo, spumosis volvitur undis.” Translation: Hear in the inaccessible forests of Æmonia, which is everywhere enclosed by the forest called Tempe, through which the river Peneus, scattered by the Pindus Mountain range, tosses with foamy waves.
References: Van den Broecke 231; Van der Krogt, AN: P-Tempe:31
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