The Ornaments Atop the Right Portal, from the Arch of Honor, proof, dated 1515, printed 1517-18
Medium
Woodcut
Dimensions
Sheet: 18 1/4 × 24 3/8 in. (46.3 × 61.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1928
Accession Number
28.82.36
Art Historical Context
Behold the intricate *The Ornaments Atop the Portal*, a proof woodcut from the monumental *Arch of Honor*, dated 1515 and printed between 1517 and 18. This detailed print forms part of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I grand triumphal arch—a colossal propaganda project over 9 by 11 feet when fully assembled from 192 blocks. Commissioned to immortalize the emperor's lineage, victories, and virtues, it exemplifies early 16th-century German Renaissance ambition, blending heraldry, allegory, and ornate decoration in a public spectacle of power. Crafted by a stellar collaboration of Northern Renaiss...
About the Artist
Hieronymus Andreae|Albrecht Dürer|Hans Springinklee|Albrecht Altdorfer (German|German) · 1525 |1495 –1556 |1530
German, Bad Mergentheim ca. 1485–1556 Nuremberg|German, ca. 1495–after 1522