Virgin on the Crescent (Title Page of the Life of the Virgin)
Medium
ephemera
Classification
ephemera
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Leo Wallerstein
Accession Number
1951-170-37
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Albrecht Dürer, of the greatest artists of the Northern Renaissance, *Virgin on the Crescent ( Page of the Life of Virgin)* in 1511. This woodcut print serves as the introductory page for Dürer's renowned series *The Life of the Virgin*, cycle of 20 intricate engravings and woodcuts depicting key moments in the life of Mary, blending biblical narratives with apocryphal tales. Standing on a crescent moon—a symbol drawn from the Book of Revelation— the Virgin Mary embodies purity and triumph over evil, a motif central to late medieval and Renaissance devotion. Dürer's mastery of woodcut techniq...