The Threatened Swan
The Threatened Swan () is an oil painting of a mute swan made around 1650 by Dutch Golden Age painter Jan Asselijn. The work is in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. It is high and wide. The painting's subject is a life-size swan (Cygnus olor) defending its nest against a dog. At the bottom right, the painting is signed with the monogram "A". By 1800 when it was purchased, the painting was interpreted as a political allegory of grand pensionary (the highest official in Holland, the main province of the Dutch Republic) Johan de Witt protecting the country from its enemies. Three inscriptions had been added: the words "de raad-pensionaris" (the grand pensionary) between the swan's legs, the words "de viand van de staat" (the enemy of the state) above the head of the dog on the left, and the name "Holland" on the egg on the right. Also, based on a recent speculation, it represents Zeus in the story of Leda and the Swan. In the 1790s this painting was in the collection of Jan Gildemeester and was included in the 1800 catalog of paintings (ordered alphabetically by artist) produced for his estate sale,