Joseph and Potiphar's Wife
1510–65
Medium
Pen and black ink.
Dimensions
Overall: 4 5/8 x 3 in. (11.8 x 7.6 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1950
Accession Number
50.605.2
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the intimate world of Renaissance drawings, Heinrich Aldegrever's *Joseph and Potiphar Wife* (c. 1510–65) captures a pivotal biblical moment from the Book of Genesis. The German artist, a master engraver from Soest known for his precise "Little Masters" style, the virtuous Joseph fleeing the seductive advances of Potiphar's, a tale symbolizing temptation resisted and moral integrity. This small-scale work, measuring just 4 5/8 x 3 inches, invites close viewing, much like a whispered Renaissance secret. Rendered in pen and black ink, Aldegrever employs fine, meticulous lines characteristic ...
About the Artist
Heinrich Aldegrever · 1502–1561
Heinrich Aldegrever, born in 1502 in Paderborn, Westphalia, to parents Herman and Katherine Trippenmeker—a family of clog-makers known by the dialect name Trippenmecker—emerged as a multifaceted artist in the German Renaissance. His early training remains undocumented, though he likely apprenticed in a Soest goldsmith's workshop after relocating there around 1525, where he joined the painters' gui...