Frederick V, Elizabeth, and Prince Frederick Frederick Henry
1551 to 1600
Medium
engraving pulled from silver medal engraved by the artist
Dimensions
plate: 6 × 4.8 cm (2 3/8 × 1 7/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.9286
Art Historical Context
This exquisite engraving by Simon de Passe captures a tender family portrait of Frederick V, Elector Palatine; his wife Elizabeth, daughter of King James I of England; and their son, Prince Frederick Henry Created between 1551 and 1600 as a print pulled directly from a silver medal engraved the artist himself, it exemplifies the intimate scale of Renaissance medal-making, with a modest plate size of just 6 × 4.8 cm. Housed in the National Gallery of Art'swald Collection, this print (Department CG-E) bridges sculpture and printmaking, allowing wider dissemination of elite portraiture. De Passe...
About the Artist
Simon de Passe · 1590–1647
Simon de Passe (c. 1595–1647), born in Cologne to the renowned Dutch engraver and publisher Crispijn van de Passe the Elder and his wife Magdalene, grew up in a family dynasty of printmakers who had fled Antwerp due to religious persecution as Anabaptists. The second son among five siblings—four of whom became engravers, including brothers Crispijn II and Willem, and sister Magdalena—he trained un...