Fidelity when personified in Western art stands for the secular aspect of Faith, or the trust that exists between a master and servant, or in family relationships.
Fidelity
Fidelity is the quality of faithfulness or loyalty. Its original meaning regarded duty in a broader sense than the related concept of ''fealty''. Both derive from the Latin word ''fidēlis'', meaning "faithful or loyal". In the City of London f ...
is often represented as a woman, shown holding a golden seal and a key, but may also be represented by a dog. Fidelity may be shown alone, or may be accompanied by a dog, a symbol of not only faithfulness but also fidelity.
[Hall, James. Dictionary of Subjects & Symbols in Art. Rev. ed. United States of America: Westview Press, 1979.] In the Renaissance,
Penelope
Penelope ( ; Ancient Greek: Πηνελόπεια, ''Pēnelópeia'', or el, Πηνελόπη, ''Pēnelópē'') is a character in Homer's ''Odyssey.'' She was the queen of Ithaca and was the daughter of Spartan king Icarius and naiad Periboea. Pe ...
or
Griselda might also stand for fidelity. Fidelity is not in the usual lists of the
seven virtues, though it may sometimes be included in such groupings. The plant myrtle (''
Myrtus'') has been associated with fidelity, and hence used in weddings, from Roman times to the present, and wreathed crowns of myrtle may be found in art.
Fidelity in allegory
A dog, when included in an
allegorical
As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory th ...
painting, portrays the attribute of fidelity personified.
The deep origins of this can also be recognized in the generic name ''Fido'' given to dogs, which originated from the Latin word ''fidus,'' meaning "trust." The story of the faithful dog of Titus Labienus, that would not quit his master's corpse, recorded in
Pliny's Natural History
The ''Natural History'' ( la, Naturalis historia) is a work by Pliny the Elder. The largest single work to have survived from the Roman Empire to the modern day, the ''Natural History'' compiles information gleaned from other ancient authors. ...
book viii, was briefly recounted in
Cesare Ripa
Cesare Ripa (c. 1555, Perugia – Rome) was an Italian iconographer who worked for Cardinal Anton Maria Salviati as a cook and butler.
Life
Little is known about his life. He was born of humble origin in Perugia about 1555. The exact date of ...
's ''Iconologia'' (1593, etc.) in the explanation of the emblem of ''Fedeltà'' represented as a woman holding a ring and accompanied by a white dog.
Fidelity in portraiture
When in a portrait of a married couple, a dog placed in a woman's lap or at her feet can represent marital fidelity. When the portrait is of a widow, a dog can represent her continuing faithfulness to the memory of her late husband.
An example of a dog representing marital fidelity is present in Jan van Eyck's "
Arnolfini Portrait
''The Arnolfini Portrait'' (or ''The Arnolfini Wedding'', ''The Arnolfini Marriage'', the ''Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife'', or other titles) is a 1434 oil painting on oak panel by the Early Netherlandish painter Jan van Eyck. It fo ...
."
Fidelity and Death
During the Middle Ages, images of dogs were often carved on tombstones to represent the deceased's feudal loyalty or marital fidelity.
The
crusader lying in full armor on his tomb-chest, with a dog beneath his feet is a familiar trope.
References
{{Reflist
Iconography
Allegory