The Unicorn Purifies the Water with Its Horn

probably c. 1555/1561

Jean Duvet

Associated Names
Jean Duvet

Artist, French, 1485 - c. 1570

The image shows a scene with a unicorn drinking from a stream in the center, surrounded by lions, boars, and deer. A stone bridge crosses the stream in the background, with a landscape of trees and a city with a castle visible beyond. The artwork is monochrome, using variations of soft grays to highlight the intricate etched lines.

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    engraving on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to plate mark): 22.5 × 40 cm (8 7/8 × 15 3/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1946.21.288

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Eisler 1979, no. 68, State ii/ii


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(William H. Schab, New York); purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], 1946; gift to NGA, 1946.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1971

  • Fifteenth- and Sixteenth-Century Prints from the Rosenwald Collection, Saint John's College, Santa Fe, NM, 1971, no catalogue.

  • Fifteenth- and Sixteenth-Century Prints from the Rosenwald Collection, Mary Washington College of the University of Virginia, Fredericksburg, VA, 1971, no. 31, repro.

1973

  • Fifteenth- and Sixteenth-Century Prints of Northern Europe from the National Gallery of Art Rosenwald Collection, Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1973, no. 71, repro.

2000

  • The Fantastic in Renaissance Prints and Drawings, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2000.

2007

  • Fabulous Journeys and Faraway Places: Travels on Paper, 1450 - 1700, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2007

Bibliography

1979

  • Eisler, Colin. The Master of the Unicorn: The Life and Work of Jean Duvet. New York: Abaris Books,1979.

Markings

"National Gallery of Art, LJR" verso, upper right center, black stamped ink.

Watermarks

grapes

Wikidata ID

Q65077523

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