The Joyous Entry & the Seven-Pointed Star
In a long, narrow passage the Archdukes’ Joyous Entry into Antwerp is evoked by the engravings J. Bochius’ Pompae triumphalis and from his Historia narratio. The Entry is further documented with the Stuffed horse of Isabella, one of the two oldest stuffed animals in the world — the other is the horse of the Archduke — (Brussels, Koninklijk Museum van het Leger en de Krijgsgeschiedenis), with the Bible of Mathias Corvinus from 1485–1487, the bible on which they took their oath to uphold the country’s liberties (Brussels, Koninklijke Bibliotheek), and the Model for a statue of the Emperor Charles V that the citizens of Ghent had Robert de Nole carve for along the route of the entry (Ghent, Museum van de Bijloke). On either side of the ‘road’ the presents which the Archdukes received from the magistrates of the various cities will be displayed: the 24 Scenes from the Aeneid engraved by Philip Galle and printed on silk (Oxford, Bodleian Library) and the Counterpane of the Archdukes, a gift from the city of Brussels (Brussels, Koninklijke Musea voor Kunst en Geschiedenis).
| The Joyous Entry leads to the heart of the exhibition, a seven-sided prism. Each side leads into one of the five ‘senses’, while the entrance and exit are at the extremes of the area. In the centre of the area stand the bronze lion from St Michael’s cathedral (a symbol of dynastic continuity) and Isabella’s sceptre (a symbol of sovereignty). Brueghel and Van Balen’s Five Senses (both in Madrid, Prado) will also be in this area. The entrances to the various different rooms are reconstructions of the examples of triumphal arches given in Francquart’s Premier livre d'architecture. |
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