70 - Albrecht Dürer - Coat of Arms with a Skull - By Wierix

Albrecht Dürer - Coat of Arms with a Skull - By Wierix Description: Coat of Arms with a Skull. The theme of the memento mori is recasted in a brilliant and unusual form. This is one of the most famous copper engravings by the brothers Wierix after Albrecht Dürer. They made this incredible close works already as early as the 1560's at the age of 12, 14 to 17 years old as indicated on some of those prints. This one does not have their initials nore age. It is a first state before further publishers address, signed with the Monogram AD on the tablet and date 1503 on the stone bottom middle. This is one of the main pieces together with Melancolica and Ritter tot und teufel. The woman in patrician dress is identified by her crown as a bride, but the person who embraces her from behind is a wild man, a traditional figure from German folklore often presented at weddings, but his shield, invisible for the young woman, reveals him to be a surrogate of death. The angle of the skull on the shield is exactly that of the young woman's he Dimensions: 21,9 × 15,8 cm Condition: An excellent fine strong impression with all detail. On a dense laid paper with fragment of a heraldic watermark trimmed on plate border . In a very good clean condition. Literature: Hollstein / Dutch and Flemish etchings, engravings and woodcuts c.1450-1700 (1999. I/II) ---- Mauquoy-Hendrickx 1979 / Les Estampes des Wierix catalogue raisonné (1477. I/II) -----Alvin 1866 / Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre des trois frères Jan, Jérome et Antoine Wierix (1198) ---- Meder 1932 / Dürer Katalog ((copy))(98) Medium: Engraving Date: 1565-1600