View across a River to a Walled City at Sunset

1540s

Master CR

Associated Names
Master CR

Artist, German, active c. 1530 - 1550

The image shows a cityscape from an elevated viewpoint, featuring a river or body of water, with a medieval cityscape silhouetted against the skyline. The city spans from left to right with spires and towers. The sun is low on the right, casting dramatic rays across the sky. The style is detailed with hatching and cross-hatching for texture and shading. The color palette is monochromatic in shades of grey and black. In the foreground, there are cottages, trees, and a wooden fence. On the water, there are sailing ships with unfurled sails, leading towards the city. The artwork combines man-made and natural elements with skillful lines depicting history and a quiet life near the urban center.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund

  • Dimensions

    plate: 15.5 × 23.1 cm (6 1/8 × 9 1/8 in.)
    sheet: 17.8 × 24.3 cm (7 × 9 9/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2013.71.1

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Nagler (vol II, no. 589) undesc

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Unknown 19th century collector, part of an album of Hirschvogel prints. (sale, Christie's London, 6 December 2012, no. 29); (C. G. Boerner, New York); purchased 2013 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2022

  • The Renaissance in the North: New Prints and Perspectives, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2022.

Bibliography

1858

  • Nagler, G.K. Die Monogrammisten und diejenigen bekannten und unbekannten Kunstler aller Schulen .... 5 vols. Munich: G. Franz, 1858-1879. Reprint. Munich: G. Hirth's Verlag, 1919, vol. II, no. 589, undesc.

1957

  • Schmitt, Annegrit. Hans Lautensack. Nuremberg: Verein für Geschichte der Stadt Nürnberg, 1957, p. 104 under cat. 97, fig. 58.

Inscriptions

lower left in image: CR (in monogram)

Markings

none

Watermarks

double headed eagle in shield, crown and M (similar to Briquet 326, 1589/1591)

Wikidata ID

Q76561935