Justice personified by a young woman holding a sword in her raised right hand, scales in her left, from 'The Virtues'
Original title: Justice personified by a young woman holding a sword in her raised right hand, scales in her left, from 'The Virtues'
kurzbeschreibung
Justice personified as a young woman, her raised right hand gripping a sword and her left holding a pair of scales. Marcantonio Raimondi engraved this figure around 1515–25; the sheet belongs to the series 'The Virtues' and measures 21.4 x 10.8 cm.
Description
Justitia faces us straight on, her long robe clinging closely to her body and legs. Her hair is woven into a curly braid. A semicircular arch frames the figure, while at lower left a horizontal form rests on the ground. Sword and scales are clearly legible in her hands.
Context
Raimondi, an Italian engraver of the Renaissance, became best known for his reproductive prints after Raphael. The series 'The Virtues' took shape during his Roman years, between 1515 and 1525. Allegories of virtue like this one were widespread in the Renaissance and often served as instruments of moral instruction.
Impact
The frontal stance and symmetrical arrangement give the print a calm balance. The crisp linework makes the figure seem chiseled, and from this comes the grave dignity that belongs to Justitia.
Technique
For this engraving the design was cut into a copper plate and then printed on paper. Raimondi used fine, precise lines to work out the details of the drapery, the attributes, and the setting. The format of 21.4 x 10.8 cm matches the usual size of a single-sheet print from that period.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)