A Rose a Day No.32

The erotic ambiance created by roses is definitely theme of Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s ‘Venus Verticordia’ (1864-68).

"Verticordia" means ‘who changes hearts’, and the theme of the redemptive power of sexual love   is given an explicit pictorial treatment.  A lustrous, red-headed woman is shown  bare-breasted  and surrounded by  flowers – Centifolia Roses behind her and honeysuckle in front.  She holds Cupid’s arrow in her right hand, and  an apple – symbol of temptation,  but also of the judgement of Paris - in the other.  Yellow butterflies, symbol of hope and guidance  and of the   soul,  perch on the apple and arrow, and bedeck her halo. But it is the powerful reds of  the flowers that make the biggest impression. In the popular ‘language of flowers’ of the period,  the honeysuckle usually symbolized devoted love.  Apparently, Rossetti spent a large amount of money to get  his Centifolia roses, refreshing his collection regularly with  new blossoms, as he painstakingly painted them.  The air must have been extremely fragrant, as   honeysuckle and  Centifolia are both especially noted for their powerful scents, which also adds an invisible dimension of  sensual allure to the painting. Venus is a woman of considerable and threatening power.