Fabel van de feniks

The mythical bird is shown atop a nest of burning twigs, its wings spread wide as it faces a radiant sun. Billowing clouds of smoke rise from the pyre, while the sun's rays fill the upper left quadrant of the composition. The print captures the moment of the bird's burning, a prerequisite for its legendary rebirth.

The phoenix is a central symbol in Western esotericism, representing the soul's immortality and the final 'rubedo' stage of the alchemical Great Work. In the context of Rudolf II’s court in Prague, such imagery served as a metaphor for the transformation of matter and the soul’s ascent toward divine light.