Planetarum effectus et eorum in signis zodiaci

Maarten de Vos was a Flemish painter and designer whose work was widely disseminated through engravings. This series was engraved and published by Johannes Sadeler I in Antwerp in 1585 and depicts the seven planetary powers known in early modern astrology.

The seven plates show Sol, Luna, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn as planetary powers governing human activity. Sol rides in a chariot drawn by four horses above ceremonies of authority and triumph, including a royal coronation, papal anointing, and a procession through a triumphal arch. Luna, personified as Diana, carries a bow and quiver above a marine world of ships and fishing vessels. Mercury, god of travel and commerce, holds a caduceus above a harbour filled with goods. Venus presides over love, pleasure, and prosperity; Mars over soldiers, violence, and disorder; Jupiter over authority and expansive landscapes; and Saturn, carrying a scythe, over labour, age, industry, and mining. Each plate is linked to its zodiacal signs, including Leo for Sol, Cancer for Luna, Gemini and Virgo for Mercury, Libra and Taurus for Venus, Capricorn and Scorpio for Mars, Sagittarius and Pisces for Jupiter, and Aries and Aquarius for Saturn.