The Offer of Love (or The Ill-Assorted Couple)
Albrecht Dürer (German, 1471–1528)
1495–1496
Medium
engraving
Dimensions
14.8 × 13.7 cm
Classification
Department
Prints
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Leonard C. Hanna Jr.
Accession Number
1934.344
Tags
male
About this artwork
In the late 15th century, moralizing scenes of mismatched lovers were popular subjects for prints. In one variation of the theme, a young woman seduces an unwitting old man in order to steal his money. In Dürer’s version here, however, the male figure willingly reaches into his purse to pay for his younger companion’s affections.