Divinity (Divinitas)
Engraving, part of a series of nine oval prints with allegorical representations of the virtues, and with a kind of exergue on the bottom containing an inscription of the virtue represented. The virtues are represented by female figures endowed with their attributes and landscapes in the backgrounds. In most cases, the attributes are composite and recall other virtues, suggesting that the person who possesses one virtue can have them all. Delaune seems to insist, particularly, on the virtues of wisdom, peace and piety as the basis for the development of other virtues. In this print, Divinity is represented by a standing woman wearing a draped dress and a cape, her breasts left uncovered. She holds her left arm down by her body, and lifts the right arm towards the sky; her hands are both surrounded by halos with offsetting rays. Her head is framed by a halo made up of seven stars, possibly symbolizing the seven virtues. She stands on a globe in front of a background with clouds.
Artwork Details
- Title: Divinity (Divinitas)
- Artist: Etienne Delaune (French, Orléans 1518/19–1583 Strasbourg)
- Date: 1569 (?)
- Medium: Engraving
- Dimensions: Sheet (trimmed): 2 1/8 × 1 5/8 in. (5.4 × 4.1 cm)
- Classifications: Prints, Ornament & Architecture
- Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1947
- Object Number: 47.139.29
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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