Allegory on the Good and the Corrupt Tree
Gillis van Breen
c. 1600
Medium
Engraving in black on cream laid paper
Dimensions
19.3 × 28.5 cm (7 5/8 × 11 1/4 in.)
Classification
prints and drawing
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
271908
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The contrasting couples in this composition are meant to demonstrate virtuous and sinful love. On the right, a couple in luxurious fabrics embraces, sitting next to a tree rooted in a blackened heart and skull and with monstrous creatures on its thorny branches. To the left stand a man and woman clothed in light robes and holding hands beside a flowering tree, which sprouts from a white heart above the word “Christ.” The inscription reinforces the idea that spiritual love leads to salvation, whe...