Hercules
Albrecht Dürer (German, 1471–1528)
c. 1496–97
Medium
woodcut
Dimensions
{"platemark":{"height":0.391,"width":0.285}}
Classification
Department
Prints
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of The Print Club of Cleveland
Accession Number
1926.107
Tags
male
About this artwork
Even though Dürer entitled this work Ercules, the narrative of the representation remains highly debated. The most recent interpretation suggests that Dürer adapted the scene from an obscure Roman tragedy, one he may have learned through his humanist friends. The story describes how prior to Hercules’ first heroic labor, the goddess Juno incited within him a monstrous rage. This resulted in the killing of a tyrant, seen under Hercules’ left foot, and the murder of his own family, represented her...