Allegory of Fire
by PALOMINO, Acislo Antonio, Oil on canvas, 246 x 160 cm
This painting belongs to the series The Four Elements painted in the early eighteenth century for the Buen Retiro Palace in Madrid. The series consists of Air (by Palomino), Water (by Ezquerra), Earth (by Vaccaro) and Fire (by Palomino).
The allegory takes place in a setting of dark foliage that partly conceals a grotto - the forge of Vulcan - while the sea horizon on the other side is dominated by the crater of a volcano. In the foreground Venus, accompanied by Cupid and some putti, pays a visit to her husband’s forge.