The Annunciation

probably c. 1509/1510

Albrecht Dürer

Associated Names
Albrecht Dürer

Artist, German, 1471 - 1528

The image shows two figures in a room. One figure has large, feathered wings and is standing with one hand raised, facing a seated figure with flowing hair and hands together. Above the seated figure is a dove surrounded by rays of light. In the background, an architectural frame is visible. In the upper part of the image, a small scene shows a figure on a cloud with symbols. The scene is detailed with various lines and shading, resembling a woodcut or engraving technique, suggesting an indoor setting with potential divine significance.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    woodcut on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to block): 12.7 × 9.7 cm (5 × 3 13/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.3635

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Meder, no. 128

  • Series Title

    The Small Woodcut Passion

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Joseph Daniel Böhm [1794-1865], Vienna (Lugt 271); Robert Scholtz [1834-1912], Budapest (Lugt 2241); (William Schab, New York); purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], Jenkintown, PA (Lugt 1760b and Lugt 1932d), 1940; gift to NGA, 1943.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1956

  • The Life of Christ in Prints, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1956-1957, no cat.

Bibliography

1932

  • Meder, Joseph. Dürer-Katalog; ein Handbuch über Albrecht Dürers Stiche, Radierungen, Holzschnitte, deren Zustände, Ausgaben und Wasserzeichen. Vienna: Verlag Gilhofer und Ranschburg, 1932. Reprint. New York: Da Capo Press, 1971.

2001

  • Schoch, Rainer, Mattihas Mende, and Anna Scherbaum. Albrecht Dürer: Das druckgraphische Werk. Munich, 2001: vol. 2: no. 189.

Inscriptions

in block, top right: AD [artist's monogram]; verso, lower left, in graphite by a later hand: D; verso, bottom left, in graphite by a later hand: 19; verso, bottom right, in graphite by a later hand: 17 [upside down]

Watermarks

none visible

Wikidata ID

Q18338582

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