A Nereid Riding a Sea Centaur Accompanied by Other Sea Creatures
Medium
Etching with drypoint; first state of two
Dimensions
Sheet: 8 7/8 × 12 1/8 in. (22.6 × 30.8 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1927
Accession Number
27.78.2(215)
Art Historical Context
This enchanting etching captures a lively mythological scene from the mid-16th century, featuring a Nereid gracefully riding a sea centaur amid playful marine creatures. Created around 1540–60 and attributed to Angiolo Falconetto or the celebrated Parmigianino (Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola), the work reflects the Renaissance fascination with classical antiquity and the imaginative freedom of Mannerist art. Parmigianino’s elegant, elongated figures and dynamic compositions often infused such subjects with a sense of movement and fantasy, transforming ancient sea myths into visually captivat...