The King and Queen of Tunis (Rex et Regina de Tunis)
Original title: The King and Queen of Tunis (Rex et Regina de Tunis)
kurzbeschreibung
Two figures are identified by the title as the King and Queen of Tunis. Wenceslaus Hollar's etching, made around 1645, is drawn with fine lines and measures 7.6 × 13.2 centimetres.
Description
On the left sits the king, barefoot in a plain dark robe, his face pensive and serious, his head wrapped in a turban-like covering. To the right is the queen, her gaze turned toward him, one hand raised as if to explain something. Delicate strokes and hatching shape both bodies, while the background stays plain and dark, making the figures stand out. Across the top of the sheet runs the title 'Rex et Regina de Tunis'.
Context
Hollar, a Bohemian printmaker, worked in England and on the Continent during the first half of the seventeenth century. This sheet dates from around 1645, when North Africa and the Ottoman Empire were appearing more often in European travel accounts and prints. It belongs to a tradition that presented non-European rulers as ethnographic types. The inscription names a model after Leonardo da Vinci, forging a link to Italian precedents in the history of reception.
Impact
At first glance the calm, centrally aligned arrangement feels detached and documentary. The eye moves back and forth between the two seated figures, drawn by their silent exchange. Finely drawn lines give the sheet a precise, almost factual quality that reinforces its documentary air. With so little distraction, attention settles almost of its own accord on the figures and their rapport.
Technique
The drawing was etched into a metal plate, its lines deepened by acid, and the image could then be printed. The dense hatching and graded strokes match Hollar's exacting style. The small size of 7.6 × 13.2 centimetres points to a reproductive print intended for larger editions.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)