Arcimboldo's Composite Seasons: A 16th-Century Marvel

Giuseppe Arcimboldo's allegorical portraits of the four seasons, created in 1563 for Emperor Maximilian II, combine botanical and zoological specimens into fantastical composite heads. Only Winter, Summer, and Spring survive from the original series; Autumn exists as a 1573 copy made by the artist for a gift to a European monarch. Each face is composed of seasonal plants: Winter features a tree trunk, moss, and fungi; Spring includes 80 flower species; Summer incorporates exotic imports like corn from America and white eggplant from Africa and Arabia. The paintings reflect Maximilian II's patronage of the new sciences of botany and zoology, making Vienna a center of scientific study. A later work, Four Seasons in One Head (1590), synthesizes elements from all seasons. The originals are held by the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and the Museo de la Real Academia de San Fernando in Madrid; the Louvre holds the Autumn copy.