This 450-Year Old Painting Contains Over 100 Hidden Proverbs We Still Use Today
The literal illustrations of the ‘Netherlandish Proverbs’
Source-Wikipedia
The Netherlandish Proverbs is an oil-on-oak painting that was created by Pieter Bruegel the Elder in 1559. This masterpiece encapsulates approximately 112 proverbs and idioms that are identified in the English language and some of them are still in popular use.
The Netherlanders were fond of proverbs and used them in their language; 100 years before Bruegel’s painting. Desiderius Erasmus, the Dutch philosopher, and scholar were the first to publish Adagia which is a wide collection of rich proverbs and idioms.
Bruegel painted several art pieces portraying hidden proverbs and idioms but this was one of his most notable works and praised for his ordered portrayal and integrated scene.
The symbolic interpretation of the Netherlandish Proverbs
The painting also called The Dutch Proverbs, The Blue Cloak, or The Topsy Turvy World depicts the figurative representations in a comprehensive spatial setting that unfold more than 100 proverbs.
The Blue Cloak, the composition’s original title, features in the center of the piece and is being placed on a man by his…
