Rubens and Aguilonius: New Points of Contact

The six books on optics by Father Franciscus Aguilonius (1567-1617), published in 1613 but approved by the censor on December 9,1611, constitute the only volume for which Rubens not only designed a title page but also provided illustrations in the conventional sense of the word. 1 (Neither the plates added to the slim book of philological notes written by his brother Philip and published in 1608, nor the large engravings he designed for the Roman Breviary and Missal of 1614 are, strictly speaking, illustrations of the accompanying text; and a volume planned to contain illustrations of ancient gems never materialized during Rubens's lifetime.) 2