May and June from "The Peasants' Feast" or "The Twelve Months"
1546–47
Medium
Engraving; second state of three (Pauli)
Dimensions
sheet: 1 15/16 x 2 7/8 in. (5 x 7.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1966
Accession Number
66.529.53
Tags
Art Historical Context
Sebald Beham, a leading figure among the German "Little Masters" of the Northern Renaissance, created this delicate engraving *May and June* from his series *The Peasants' Feast* (or *The Twelve Months*) around 1546–47. Known for his intricate small-scale works, Beham captured the rhythms of rural life in 16th-century Europe, where peasants' festivals marked the turning seasons. This second state of three impressions—measuring just 1 15/16 x 2 7/8 inches—exemplifies the era's fascination with genre scenes, blending everyday toil and revelry into a calendar of communal joys. Engraving allowed ...
About the Artist
Sebald Beham · 1500–1550
Sebald Beham (1500–1550), a pioneering German printmaker and painter born in Nuremberg, emerged as one of the most prolific artists of the Northern Renaissance. The elder brother of fellow artist Barthel Beham, he grew up in a milieu steeped in artistic tradition, though details of his early training remain sparsely documented. Recorded as a journeyman painter (Malergeselle) by 1521 and a master w...