Virgin on the Crescent with Scepter and Starry Crown
1516
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet: 4 5/8 × 2 15/16 in. (11.7 × 7.4 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The George Khuner Collection, Gift of Mrs. George Khuner, 1968
Accession Number
68.793.38
Tags
Art Historical Context
Albrecht Dürer, the masterful German artist of the Northern Renaissance, created *Virgin on the Crescent withcepter and Starry Crown in 1516 as a delicate engraving. This small gem, measuring just 4 5/8 × 2 15/16 inches, depicts the Virgin Mary enthroned on a shimmering crescent moon, holding a scepter and adorned with a starry crown. from the Book of Revelation (12:1), it portrays her as the apocalyptic Woman clothed with the sun a powerful symbol of purity, divine favor, and the Immaculate Conception cherished in Catholic devotion. Dürer's genius shines in his engraving technique, where fin...
About the Artist
Albrecht Dürer · 1471–1528
Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) stands as the preeminent figure of the Northern Renaissance and arguably the most influential artist in the history of printmaking. Born in Nuremberg on May 21, 1471, and dying in the same city on April 6, 1528, Dürer revolutionized the status of the artist in Northern Europe, transforming printmaking from a commercial craft into an independent fine art and establishing ...