Faith (Fides) from The Virtues (ca. 1559–60, Met-Objekt 1917)
Original title: Faith (Fides) from The Virtues
kurzbeschreibung
Pieter Bruegel the Elder made this engraving around 1559–60 as part of his series on the virtues. Titled Faith (Fides), the print sets an allegorical scene inside a church. The impression is the first of two states.
Description
Columns and arches divide the church interior into bays. At the front a figure holding a book preaches or teaches, while a staircase leads up to a raised platform where another person speaks. People in traditional dress listen attentively, and further figures appear near the altar. Crisp lines and even light sharpen every contour.
Context
Around 1559–60 Bruegel was deeply engaged with moral and religious subjects. The virtue series was commissioned by the publisher Hieronymus Cock, who had Bruegel's designs cut in copper. This sheet belongs to a set of seven covering the divine and cardinal virtues.
Impact
Architectural severity and a calm, instructive mood shape the layout. Evenly spread light and precise lines give the image a clear, almost didactic language that draws the viewer toward its allegorical meaning.
Technique
Engraving shows itself here in fine lines and hatching that build modelled shadows and richly detailed figures and architecture. The design was incised into a copper plate and then printed; the first state survives as evidence of how the plate might later be reworked.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)