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Open 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

Visit
Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Admission is always free

6th and Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20565

Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights
Through September 5
Exhibitions & Events
America’s 250th

Celebrating American art and artists
Art & Artists
Open Call

Artists Reimagining the Collection
Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Thistle Ornament

Martin Schongauer

Associated Names

Martin Schongauer

Artist, German, c. 1450 - 1491

The image depicts an intricate design of flowing, swirling lines forming a graceful, abstract pattern. The shapes resemble twisting vines or curling leaves, suggesting elements of nature stylized in an ornate manner. The curves and points create an effect reminiscent of a delicate botanical motif or elaborate ironwork. The detailed and sinuous design invites a comparison to the fluid and intricate forms found in nature, while maintaining its abstract and artistic presentation.

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Artwork overview

Medium

engraving
Credit Line

Rosenwald Collection
Dimensions

sheet: 13.5 × 9.3 cm (5 5/16 × 3 11/16 in.)
Accession Number

1943.3.91
Catalogue Raisonné

Hollstein, no. 112, State only

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Charles Sessler, Philadelphia); purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], 1930; gift to NGA, 1943.

Associated Names

Rosenwald, Lessing Julius

Exhibition History

1953

Nuremberg and the German World, 1460-1530: Prints and books from the Kress and Rosenwald Collections, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1953, no catalogue.

1959

Graphic Art of Durer and Schongauer, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 1959, no catalogue.

1967

Fifteenth Century Engravings of Northern Europe from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., NGA, 1967-1968, no. 107, 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. 107.

Wikidata ID

Q64960311

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