Mystic Marriage of St. Catherine
ca. 1542–47 (?)
Medium
Etching
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1927
Accession Number
27.78.2(73)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold the *Mystic Marriage of St Catherine*, a captivating etching by Andrea Schiavone (Andrea Meldola), created around 1542–47. This Venetian Renaissance artist, influenced by masters like Titian and Parmino, masterfully depicts the sacred union between St. Catherine of Alexandria and the Christ Child. Angels surround the scene, symbolizing grace, as the infant Christ places a ring on the saint's finger—a poignant allegory of spiritual devotion central to Catholic mysticism during the Counter-Reformation era. Schiavone's etching technique marks a highlight of 16th-century printmaking innova...
About the Artist
Andrea Schiavone (Andrea Meldola) · 1510–1563
Andrea Schiavone, born Andrea Meldolla around 1510 or 1515 in Zara (modern Zadar, Croatia), in Venetian-ruled Dalmatia, hailed from a family rooted in Meldola near Forlì in Romagna, Emilia-Romagna. His father, Simon Meldolla, served as a garrison commander there, and both parents originated from Meldola, where the family held property into the early 16th century. Nicknamed "Schiavone"—"the Slav"—a...