Half-Figure of an Old Woman with a Cap

c. 1535

Hans Baldung Grien

Associated Names
Hans Baldung Grien

Artist, German, 1484/1485 - 1545

The image displays the upper half of an elderly woman's body in profile, facing the left side. Her arms rest in front of her, and her facial features are detailed, showing prominent cheekbones, deep-set eyes, and wrinkles. She wears a simple head covering with textured folds and plain clothing, partially exposing her bust. She is not wearing any jewelry or holding objects. The background is a solid, muted blue-green color, providing contrast and focusing attention on the woman.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    charcoal with green wash added by a later hand on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Edith G. Rosenwald

  • Dimensions

    Overall (approximate): 39.6 x 23.6 cm (15 9/16 x 9 5/16 in.)
    support: 39.6 x 24.9 cm (15 9/16 x 9 13/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1978.10.6

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Mrs. Lessing J. Rosenwald [1893-1988], Jenkintown, PA; gift 1978 to NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1940

  • Master Drawings: An Exhibition of Drawings from American Museums and Private Collections, Palace of Fine Arts, Golden Gate International Exposition, San Francisco, CA, 1940, no. 50, repro.

1943

  • Selections from the Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1943-1944, pp. 50-51, repro.

1950

  • Masterpieces of Drawing: Diamond Jubilee Exhibition, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1950-1951, no.31, repro.

1955

  • Master Drawings, Davison Art Center, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, 1955.

1960

  • Old Master Drawings, Newark Museum, Newark, NJ, 1960, no. 18, repro.

1961

  • Masterpieces: A Memorial Exhibition for Adele R. Levy, Wildenstein & Co., New York, 1961, no. 63, repro.

1978

  • Master Drawings from the Collection of the National Gallery of Art and Promised Gifts, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1978, pp. 24-25.

1981

  • Hans Baldung Grien: Prints & Drawings, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., and Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT, 1981, no. 89, repro.

2018

  • Dürer e il Rinascimento Tedesco, Palazzo Reale, Milan, 2018.

2019

  • Hans Baldung Grien, Large State Exhibition of Baden-Wurttemberg, Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe, 2019 - 2020, no. 251.

  • Hans Baldung Grien, Large State Exhibition of Baden-Wurttemberg, Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, 2019 - 2020, unnumbered catalogue.

Bibliography

1943

  • Mongan, Elizabeth. Selections from the Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art. Washington, 1943: 51, repro.

1947

  • Tietze 1947, 36.

Inscriptions

upper left in monogram: HGB

Watermarks

present but not identified

Wikidata ID

Q64572917

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