Venus removing a thorn from her left foot while seated on a cloth beside trees and foliage, a hare eating grass before her (ca. 1516)
Original title: Venus removing a thorn from her left foot while seated on a cloth beside trees and foliage, a hare eating grass before her
kurzbeschreibung
Venus, the goddess of love, has settled on a spread-out cloth and pulls a thorn from her left foot. Right in front of her, a hare nibbles at the grass. Marco Dente placed this scene around 1516 in a rural setting with trees, a river, and gentle hills.
Description
In the foreground, the woman crouches on a cloth, her left foot drawn up, and works the thorn loose with one hand. A hare sits beside her, eating grass. Behind them the landscape opens up: trees, shrubs, a river, and a hill with buildings on it. Even light falls across everything, as is typical of a black-and-white Renaissance print.
Context
The Italian engraver Marco Dente was working in Rome around 1516. For this sheet he probably drew on an ancient relief or a painted model showing Venus in idyllic nature. Dente was known for translating ancient and contemporary artworks into reproductive engravings.
Impact
The goddess in the open air gives the sheet a quiet, rural tone. Delicately placed lines and the richly articulated landscape create a balanced, idealized mood that draws the viewer's eye into the image.
Technique
In engraving, lines are cut into a metal plate and then printed on paper. The precisely guided, delicate lines and even shading are entirely in keeping with Renaissance printmaking.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)