Alfons Mucha's Slav Epic – second painting: The Feast of Svantovít on Rügen

When Gods War - Salvation in Art

Image two: The second painting, which is full of many motifs, has always struck me personally as an impressive scene full of contrast. From the celebration, to the fury of a pack of wolves, where ordinary life is at a point between the end and the beginning of something new, though the perpetual unease of the future is hinted at as a fear of the near unknown. No longer able to make a living in their overpopulated homeland, the Slavic tribes set out to find a new homeland. This is a period of great change known as the Migration of Nations.

As early as the 7th century, some Slavs settled along the coast of the Baltic Sea, which was then called the Slavic Sea. The Celtic and Germanic remnants in this area were sent to Slavonia. Where the Oder flows into the Baltic Sea is a large island with many lakes - Rügen. Here the Slavic tribe of the Rana lived for centuries. At the northernmost tip of the island, protected by defensive ramparts and steep chalk cliffs, was the capital Arkona and the temple of the god Svantovít.

The painting depicts the autumn festivities of Svantovít. The priests thanked this god for the rich harvest and prophesied things to come. Arkona was to the Slavs what Delphi once was to the ancient world. To the right, a procession led by a high priest exits the temple. Ahead of him, he carries a bull, a symbol of the power that will be sacrificed. On a sunny afternoon, people are rejoicing, singing and dancing, only the mother with her child on her lap - in the lower centre of the painting - is sombre, perhaps anticipating how bleak the future of the tribe of the Ranas will be.

During the Crusades of 1168 against the Baltic Slavs, the Danes, led by Valdemar the Dane, managed to conquer Arkona, demolish the temple and burn the statue of Svantovít. This event is symbolically depicted in the upper part of the painting. On the left is the Germanic god of war Wödan with his shield, accompanied by a pack of sacred wolves. In the middle, the last Slavic warrior dies on a sacred white horse. Svantovít takes the sword from his hand to fight for his people himself. The group of chained persons symbolizes the Slavic peoples conquered by the Germans. The figures of the bards remind us that we only know about the Baltic Slavs from chronicles, myths and legends.

Below right, a young carver creates a new idol to replace the destroyed statue of the god Svantovít. The darker colour tone makes the mother and son pair stand out plastically from the two-dimensional environment. This pair symbolizes the twilight and eventual demise of the Baltic Slavs. The treasure-filled temple at the center of the celebration was a sacred site that was the destination of pilgrims in the eighth to tenth centuries AD. Arkona was later conquered by Danish warriors. In Mucha's time, Arkona had an almost mythical significance, symbolizing proof of the original Slavic glory.

The temple is located on the left side of the background of the entire scene. The most prominent figure among the pilgrims in the foreground is a mother with a child, symbolising fertility and the future, with the sun setting behind them. At the top left is the Viking god Thor with a pack of dogs, foreshadowing the plundering of Arcona. In the centre at the top, a Slavic warrior is dying in front of the figure of Svantovit, who is wrapped in linden leaves. The vertical blue and white stream represents the warrior's sword, which the god takes to protect the future of the Slavs. The importance of artistic endeavours as a response to war is emphasised by three musicians in the centre of the composition and also by the figure of the woodcarver, who is comforted and inspired by his muse. Reference to the previous image, first. Read more here

Jan Vojtěch, Editor-in-chief, General News