Details
ALBRECHT DÜRER (1471-1528)
The Promenade
engraving
circa 1498
on laid paper, without watermark
a very good, strong and dark Meder I j impression
printing with good clarity and contrasts
with a narrow margin above and at upper left, trimmed to or fractionally into the subject elsewhere
various defects and repairs
Sheet 192 x 119 mm.
Provenance
Eduard Faesch (1812- id.1845), Kiel (Lugt 846).
Nicolas Vassiliévitch Basnine (1843-1918), Moscow (Lugt 1960).
Karl & Faber, Munich, 29 November - 1 December 1962, lot 133.
Acquired at the above sale; then by descent to the present owners.
Literature
Bartsch 94; Meder, Hollstein 83; Schoch Mende Scherbaum 19
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Lot Essay

Dürer's prints are replete with symbols. The vigorous, quick-growing plant at the left represents lust and desire, as does the sword, which Dürer places rather unambiguously between the young man's legs. The gallant is walking with his beloved - a married woman - in the countryside. Both are oblivious to Death, who lurks behind a tree in the background, holding an hourglass above his head. This is a modern, moralized version of the early 15th century theme of the Garden of Love, a memento mori and a warning against adultery. However, the moralizing tone is tinged with sadness that their love and beauty will not last.

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