Erasmus of Rotterdam

c. 1538

Veit Specklin after Hans Holbein the Younger

Associated Names
Veit Specklin

Artist, German, active c. 1525 - 1550

Hans Holbein the Younger

Artist After, German, 1497/1498 - 1543

The image shows the upper body of a person standing in a grand architectural frame topped by an ornate arch. The individual is holding a sculpted bust labeled “TERMINVS” with a wise expression. The person has distinctive facial features with a long nose and deep-set eyes, wearing a fur-lined hat and a fur-lined robe cinched at the waist. The background features detailed architectural elements including columns with sculpted figures and garlands, and cherubs on the arch, along with various intricate designs enhancing the classical and scholarly theme.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    woodcut on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 28.4 × 15 cm (11 3/16 × 5 7/8 in.)
    sheet: 28.5 × 15.2 cm (11 1/4 × 6 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.4851

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Passavant, Vol. III.390, no. 57, State a


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], Jenkintown, PA, 1929; gift to NGA, 1943.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1933

  • An Exhibition of Prints from the Collection of Lessing J. Rosenwald, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 1933, no. 69.

1953

  • The Collector's Taste, Andrew Dickinson White Art Museum, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1953-1954.

1956

  • Life and Lives in the Renaissance, Norton Gallery and School of Art, West Palm Beach, FL; and Columbia Museum of Art, SC, 1956, no. 38.

1959

  • Prints from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection, University of Nebraska Art Galleries, Lincoln, 1959, no catalogue.

  • Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, 1959.

1960

  • Graphic Masterpieces of 500 Years from the National Gallery of Art, Rosenwald Collection, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 1960, no. 21.

  • University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 1960.

1971

  • Fifteenth- and Sixteenth-Century Prints from the Rosenwald Collection, Mary Washington College of the University of Virginia, Fredericksburg, VA, 1971, no. 38, repro.

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

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. 63, repro.

  • 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. 63, repro.

2000

  • The Power of Appearances: Renaissance and Reformation Portrait Prints and Medals, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover; The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Poughkeepsie; Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, 2000-2001.

Bibliography

1860

  • Passavant, Johann David. Le peintre-graveur, contenant l'histoire de la gravure sur bois, sur metalet au buring jusque vers la fin du XVI siecle .... 6 vols. Leipzig: Rudolph Weigel, 1860-1864.

1949

  • Hollstein, F.W.H. et al. German engravings, etchings and woodcuts, ca. 1400-1700. Vol. XIV. Roosendaal, 1988: no. 9.

Inscriptions

in block, on plaque at upper center: .ER. ROT.; in block, at base of sculpture at lower center: TERMINVS; on cartouche at bottom, printed in letterpress: Corporis effigiem si quis non uidit Erasmi, / Hanc scite ad uiuum picta tabella dabit. (If anyone has not seen the shape of the body of Erasmus, it is to be found in this skillfully portrayed panel); on verso, at bottom, in graphite by later hand: Pass III 390-57 I/IV / Holbein / Erasmus de Rotterdam / [?]; at lower right, in graphite by later hand: (HH1180)

Watermarks

none

Wikidata ID

Q64957303

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