The Potter
Author: Luiken, Jan, 1649-1712
Image Title: The Potter
Scripture Reference:
- Jeremiah 18 (further images / scripture text)
Description: Sitting on a bench, the potter turns a potter’s wheel with his bare foot to shape a large clay pot. In front of a fiery oven, a second potter works at a workbench under the watchful eye of a visitor. Finished pottery is displayed on the shelves. A man enters the workshop carrying a heavy load of raw clay in a basket. The Dutch artist and poet Jan Luiken (1649-1712) was responsible for drawing this emblem and for creating the motto and poem that follow. Jan Luiken and/or his son Casper Luiken (1672-1708) were responsible for its etching. The attendant scripture text is Jeremiah 18:1-10.
Motto:
Carry in thy earthly vessel
A more valuable treasure.
Poem:
The earthly vessel, made from clay,
Goes here and there, to give service,
Until it breaks into pieces:
Like the fragile human life,
An earthly vessel, that is the visible part,
If it is otherwise well, the breaking will be healed.
(Translation by Josephine V. Brown, with editorial assistance from William G. Stryker)
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