The Griffin

c. 1480/1490

Martin Schongauer

Associated Names
Martin Schongauer

Artist, German, c. 1450 - 1491

This is a drawing of a fantastical creature. It combines features from multiple animals and resembles mythical beings often found in medieval art. The creature has a quadruped body with strong hind limbs, winged front limbs, a feathered neck, a bird-like head with a large beak and comb, fierce eyes, and a serpentine tail. The drawing shows detailed line work that emphasizes the creature's menacing and mythical nature.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    engraving on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed within plate mark): 10.1 x 9.7 cm (4 x 3 13/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1951.10.121

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Hollstein, no. 93, State only

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(William Schab, New York); purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], 1951; gift to NGA, 1951.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1956

  • Selected Prints from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection, City Art Museum, St. Louis, MO, 1956.

1967

  • Fifteenth Century Engravings of Northern Europe from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., NGA, 1967-1968, no. 88, repro.

Bibliography

1908

  • Lehrs, Max. Geschichte und kritischer Katalog des deutschen, niederlandischen und franzosischen Kupferstichs im XV. Jahrhundert. 9 vols. and 1 plate vol. Vienna: Gesellschaft fur vervielfaltigende Kunst, 1908-1934.

1949

  • Hollstein, F.W.H. et al. German engravings, etchings and woodcuts ca. 1400-1700. 8 vols. Amsterdam: Menno Hertzberger, 1954-1868. Dutch and Flemish etchings, engravings and woodcuts, ca. 1450-1700. Vols. I-XV, XVIII, XIX. Amsterdam: Menno Hertzberge

1967

  • Shestack, Alan. Fifteenth Century Engravings of Northern Europe from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.. Exh. cat. Washington: National Gallery of Art, 1967: no. 88.

Watermarks

fragment of Gothic P with flower

Wikidata ID

Q65362345

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