Landscape with Saint Christopher
ca. 1560–70
Medium
Etching and engraving
Dimensions
sheet: 7 3/8 x 9 15/16 in. (18.8 x 25.2 cm) plate: 6 x 8 1/16 in. (15.3 x 20.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Howard A. Fox Gift, Chester Dale Bequest, by exchange; A. Hyatt Mayor Purchase Fund, Marjorie Phelps Starr Bequest, 1999
Accession Number
1999.360.5
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
Created around 1560–70 by Flemish artist Lucas Gassel and published by the Antwerp firm Aux Quatre Vents *Landscape with Saint Christopher* exemplifies the rich tradition of Northern printmaking. Executed in etching and engraving, the work measures just over six by eight inches, yet it captures an expansive vista filled with rolling terrain, clustered houses, and boats gliding along a waterway. Gassel, known for his inventive landscape compositions, integrates the legendary figure of Saint Christopher—shown carrying the Christ Child across a river—seamlessly into this everyday scene. Prints such as this played a vital role in sixteenth-century Europe, allowing detailed images to circulate widely beyond the walls of churches and palaces. The combination of a popular religious subject with a carefully observed natural setting reflects the period’s growing appreciation for topography and the natural world. Viewers of the time would have recognized both the devotional message and the pleasure of exploring the finely rendered details of rural life. Today, this impression in the Metropolitan Museum’s collection continues to invite quiet contemplation, offering a window into how artists and publishers brought sacred stories and beautiful landscapes into the homes of ordinary people.
About the Artist
Aux Quatre Vents|Lucas Gassel (Netherlandish|Netherlandish) · |1495 – |1500
|Flemish, Helmond ca. 1495/1500–ca. 1570 Brussels