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Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileA muscular young hunter stands poised with a bow, targeting a large bear that gazes back at him from a wooded landscape. In the top right corner, a small scene among the clouds depicts Jupiter pulling the mother and son upward to take their place among the stars. This engraving showcases the exaggerated musculature and dynamic poses characteristic of the Haarlem Mannerist style.
This work depicts the concept of catasterism—the transformation of a mythological figure into a star or constellation—which connected classical literature with the Renaissance study of astronomy and the cosmos. The story of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor was a fundamental part of the 'star-myths' used to navigate and moralize the celestial sphere.
Dictynnæ dilecta comes Junonis ob iram Ursa fit, et nati cuspide pene perit. Non tulit omnipotens, natamq; Lycaone, celso Arcade cum nato sydera in axe locat.
Translation
Beloved companion of Dictynna, because of Juno's wrath She becomes a bear, and nearly perishes by her son's spear. The almighty could not bear it, and the daughter of Lycaon, With her Arcadian son, he places among the stars in the high heavens.
Ovid, Metamorphoses
The primary literary source for the story of Callisto and Arcas and their transformation into the Great and Little Bears.
Hyginus, Poeticon Astronomicon
A key Renaissance sourcebook for the myths associated with the constellations depicted in this catasterism.
Object
Engraving
mythological
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Image: http://collections.lacma.org/sites/default/files/remote_images/piction/ma-31890186-O3.jpg Gallery: http://collections.lacma.org/node/247434 archive copy at the Wayback Machine
Public domain
2100 × 1464 px
fdbb922a80699bd1b2681290b70a1321a940a758
July 19, 2013
March 23, 2026
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 1, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.