Young woman attacked by death (The Ravisher), ca. 1495

Blatt: 111 x 101 mm

Physical Description: Copperplate on ribbed laid paper

Inventory Number: 31406

Object Number: 31406 D

Acquisition: Ancient Holdings. Acquired before 1825

Status: Can be presented in the study room of the Graphische Sammlung (special opening hours)

Texts

About the Work

The woman tries in vain to writhe her way out, but the grip of Death—in the guise of a living corpse—is mercilessly firm. Her bonnet shows that she is married; the grassy bank as the site of a rendezvous implies that she has come there to meet her lover and commit the vice of adultery. The engraving conveys a message of warning: Death’s violent attack is the inescapable punishment for such sinful behaviour.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title: Young woman attacked by death (The Ravisher)

Artist

Albrecht Dürer

Period Produced

15th century

Object Type

art print

Physical Description: Copperplate on ribbed laid paper

Material

Technique

copperplate engraving

Geographic Reference

German

Label at the Time of Manufacture: Nicht bezeichnet

Captions Added Later: Verso bezeichnet (mit der Feder in Braun): B 10.
Verso Stempel des Städelschen Kunstinstituts, Frankfurt am Main (Lugt 2356), mit zugehöriger Inventarnummer