Design for a Knife Handle with Well-Dressed Couples
1580–1600
Medium
Engraving and blackwork
Dimensions
Sheet: 3 1/4 × 1 in. (8.3 × 2.5 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1953
Accession Number
53.670.61
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 16th century, Theodor de Bry, a engraver from the prominent de Bry family of Antwerp, created this delicate *Design for a Knife Handle Well-Dressed Couples* 1580–1600. Measuring just 3¼ × 1 inches, this engraving and blackwork print exemplifies the ornamental designs popular during the Renaissance, when artists supplied intricate patterns for luxury objects like tableware. De Bry's precise line work captures elegant couples in fashionable attire—men and women in ruffled collars and fitted garments—flanked by birds, evoking a sense of courtly romance and nature's harmony. The mediu...
About the Artist
Johann Theodor de Bry · 1561–1923
Comment on works: copper engraver