Harrowing of Hell: Christ in Limbo
Print
1512 (engraved)
1512 (engraved)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
The Engraved Passion (1507-1512) was one of four major series of religious prints made by Dürer, and helped to establish his reputation as an outstanding Renaissance printmaker. The others were the woodcut series of the Life of the Virgin, the Great Passion, and the Little Passion, all published in 1511. The Engraved Passion consists of fifteen small scale engravings and tells the story of Christ's betrayal by Judas, his crucifixion and resurrection. Dürer is renowned for inventing new and imaginative ways to depict scenes from Christian stories, and in the Engraved Passion the compositions of each plate are dramatic, intricate and complex, with emotive contrasts of light and shadow. Unlike the more populist woodcut prints, they were designed to appeal to a more exclusive market of connoisseurs and collectors. Because it took several years for the series to be completed, it is likely that individual images were sold separately. The series was also sold in sets for devotional use, and was widely copied by other printmakers and in other media.
Object details
Category | |
Object type | |
Title | Harrowing of Hell: Christ in Limbo (generic title) |
Materials and techniques | Engraving on paper |
Brief description | The Descent into Hell; plate from 'The Engraved Passion' by Albrecht Durer (1471-1528); engraving |
Physical description | Engraving by Albrecht Dürer, ‘Harrowing of Hell: Christ in Limbo’; 1512, Nuremberg. Plate 14 from ‘The Engraved Passion’. Date inscribed at centre top and artist's monogram inscribed at bottom right. Christ has broken down the doors of Hell. He has rescued Adam and Eve, who stand in the archway, and is in the act of pulling another soul from limbo, possibly John the Baptist. Flickering flames and the heads of the damned are at the bottom edge of the image. The devil’s head protrudes from beneath one of the wooden doors, and Cerberus, realised as another reptilian monster, lurks on top of the arch clutching a harpoon-like spear. |
Dimensions |
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Style | |
Marks and inscriptions |
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Credit line | Salting Bequest |
Historical context | Plate 14 from 'The Engraved Passion' |
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | The Engraved Passion (1507-1512) was one of four major series of religious prints made by Dürer, and helped to establish his reputation as an outstanding Renaissance printmaker. The others were the woodcut series of the Life of the Virgin, the Great Passion, and the Little Passion, all published in 1511. The Engraved Passion consists of fifteen small scale engravings and tells the story of Christ's betrayal by Judas, his crucifixion and resurrection. Dürer is renowned for inventing new and imaginative ways to depict scenes from Christian stories, and in the Engraved Passion the compositions of each plate are dramatic, intricate and complex, with emotive contrasts of light and shadow. Unlike the more populist woodcut prints, they were designed to appeal to a more exclusive market of connoisseurs and collectors. Because it took several years for the series to be completed, it is likely that individual images were sold separately. The series was also sold in sets for devotional use, and was widely copied by other printmakers and in other media. |
Associated objects | |
Bibliographic references |
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Other number | B.16 - Le Peintre-Graveur |
Collection | |
Accession number | E.4647-1910 |
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Record created | June 30, 2009 |
Record URL |
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