Judgment of Paris
1544
Medium
Engraving in black on buff laid paper
Dimensions
Image/plate: 11.5 × 11.5 cm (4 9/16 × 4 9/16 in.); Sheet: 13.4 × 12.9 cm (5 5/16 × 5 1/8 in.)
Classification
engraving
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
41600
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Hans Brosamer produced several classical roundels relating to the popular theme of powerful women. In this depiction of the moment that started the Trojan War, Paris, the prince of Troy, is portrayed as a shepherd; asked to choose the most beautiful among the goddesses Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite, Paris selects Aphrodite, but only after the goddess promises him the love of Helen, queen of Sparta. When Helen is spirited away from her husband and into Paris’s arms, the epic conflict begins.