Bridal pair, from the Dance of Death
Original title: Bridal pair, from the Dance of Death
kurzbeschreibung
A dancing couple in wedding attire, confronted by a skeleton: this motif comes from Wenceslaus Hollar and bears the date 1651, printed in a late 18th-century edition. It is executed as an etching, specifically the second of four states.
Description
A skeleton with a dancing staff in its right hand and a drumstick in its left leads two figures: a woman in a long, richly ornamented dress and a man in armor and helmet. Their gazes are fixed on the bone-man, whose posture wavers between menace and comedy. A curtain closes off the background; below runs a Latin text.
Context
The sheet belongs to a Dance of Death series that Hollar created in 1651 – an allegorical theme widespread in the Baroque era. The present print, however, was made only in the late 18th century. The Latin text beneath the image quotes from the Book of Ruth and reinforces the warning message about the transience of all earthly things.
Impact
Splendor and decay meet here, creating an unsettling tension. The elaborately worked fabric of the garments and the symmetrical arrangement bring the encounter with death into focus. The richness of detail in the clothing stands in sharp contrast to the skeleton's boniness.
Technique
The drawing was etched into a plate – the process of etching. The sheet is printed in black on paper; the finest lines model textures and shadows. The second state shows reworkings compared to the first print.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)