Polyhymnia, plate fifteen from Apollo and the Muses
Medium
Engraving on paper
Dimensions
Plate: 17.9 × 10 cm (7 1/16 × 3 15/16 in.); Sheet: 18.4 × 10.6 cm (7 1/4 × 4 3/16 in.)
Classification
engraving
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
11458
Art Historical Context
Behold *Polyhymnia, plate fifteen from Apollo and the Muses*, a delicate engraving on paper created around 1465 by the anonymous Master of the E-Series Tarocchi, a pivotal figure in early Italian printmaking. This intimate work, measuring just 17.9 × 10 cm, captures Polyhymnia, the Muse of sacred poetry and hymns, as part of a celebrated series evoking classical antiquity. Housed in the Art Institute of Chicago's Prints and Drawings Department, it exemplifies the Renaissance revival of mythological themes amid Italy's burgeoning humanist culture. Engraving, the medium here, marked a revolutio...
About the Artist
Master of the E-Series Tarocchi
The Master of the E-Series Tarocchi was an anonymous Italian engraver active in Ferrara around 1465, during the vibrant era of the Este court. His early life and training remain undocumented, but stylistic affinities link him to artists collaborating with Francesco del Cossa on the frescoes of Palazzo Schifanoia's Salone dei Mesi. Working in the Ferrarese tradition, he produced the pioneering E-se...