The Birth of the Virgin (from The Life of the Virgin, set of 20)

Expand

IIIFView PDF

The Birth of the Virgin (from The Life of the Virgin, set of 20)

Artist Albrecht Dürer (German, 1471-1528)

Dateabout 1503-1504

Dimensions11 3/4 x 8 1/8 in.

MediumWoodcut

ClassificationPrints

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number

1924.41

Not on View

Label TextDürer demonstrates his skillful use of perspective through the complex architectural setting that frames the three distinct groups of women engaged in the tasks of childbirth. The artist creates a typical 16th-century German interior where one encounters a number of anecdotal details of everyday life meant to appeal to his contemporary audience. However, the principal action occurs in the background, with the opening of the drapes to reveal the bedstead of St. Anne, who has just given birth to the Virgin Mary. Above this earthly scene, a guardian angel swings a censer. This visionary element, distinguished from the human realm by Dürer’s characteristic fringe of clouds and slightly raised point of view, reminds us of the exceptional occasion of Mary’s birth.Published ReferencesDackerman, Susan, editor, Painted Prints: The Revelation of Color in Northern Renaissance & Baroque Engravings, Etchings, and Woodcuts, The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2002, cat. 43 Bartsch 80. Hollstein 192. Meder 192.