Vase with a River God in an Oval Medallion
17th century (late)
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Plate: 7 1/2 x 4 7/16 in. (19 x 11.2 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011
Accession Number
2012.136.952(5)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Nestled within the intricate world of 17th-century ornamental prints *Vase with a River in an Oval Medallion showcases a fantastical design attributed to a collaboration of talents including Dutch engravers Frederick de Wit and Claes Jans. Visscher, influences from Italian Mannerist Rossoentino and French engraver Boyvin. Created in the late 1600s, this small engraving (7 1/2 x 4 7/16 inches) captures a classical vase adorned with a muscular river god framed in an elegant oval medallion, evoking the mythological rivers of antiquity that symbolized fertility and flow. As a prime example of Pri...
About the Artist
Frederick de Wit|Rosso Fiorentino|René Boyvin|Claes Jansz. Visscher (Netherlandish|Dutch) · 1571 |1629 –1656 |1706
Netherlandish, Antwerp 1571–1656 Rotterdam|Dutch, 1629/30–1706