Circle of Theives: Agnello Brunelleschi Attacked By a Six-Footed Serpent
Original title: Circle of Theives: Agnello Brunelleschi Attacked By a Six-Footed Serpent
kurzbeschreibung
Unlike many contemporary Dante illustrations, William Blake's engraving Circle of Thieves: Agnello Brunelleschi Attacked by a Six-Footed Serpent (c. 1825–27) puts the moment of physical struggle front and center. The print shows the thief Agnello Brunelleschi beset by a serpent while two other figures look on.
Description
In the foreground a powerful man with arms flung up wrestles a massive snake that wraps around his body. Two onlookers stand nearby: one in a long coat with a troubled expression. Further snakes and hints of a landscape can be made out. The arrangement feels restless and directs the gaze entirely to the contest between man and beast. Finely graded hatching creates contrasts of light and dark in monochrome.
Context
The engraving belongs to Blake's illustrations for Dante's Divine Comedy, made in his late years. The series remained unfinished and appeared only after his death. Its source was Canto 25 of the Inferno, in which thieves transform into snakes. Blake's reading intertwines biblical motifs with his own visionary imagery.
Impact
A menacing, almost dreamlike mood runs through the sheet and lets the horror of transformation be felt. The twisted posture of the attacked man and the clear linework generate immediate tension.
Technique
As a copper engraving, the motif was incised into a plate and then printed. The dense hatching produces nuanced gray values and a sense of space. The plate measures about 24.1 x 33.8 cm, the sheet 25.6 x 34.6 cm.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)