The altar of sacrifice, from a suite of ornament designs with grotesques, allegories and deities
Engraving, part of a series of six oval plates with ornament designs executed on black grounds with grotesque motifs, allegories, and divinities, designed by Étienne Delaune before 1573 (possibly during the 1550s). This print represents an altar, in the center of the print, upon which burns a sacrifice, with two women on the sides, standing in profile towards the center, and heach holding an olive branch and accompanied by a goat. This print might be an allegory of peace (with the presence of the olive branches), and the two women might be representations of virtue. However, under this interpretation, the presence of the goats is unclear; it might be that Delaune is alluding to the opposition between different religious parties, which he wants to reunite at the same altar, as the two goats in this print.
Artwork Details
- Title: The altar of sacrifice, from a suite of ornament designs with grotesques, allegories and deities
- Artist: Etienne Delaune (French, Orléans 1518/19–1583 Strasbourg)
- Date: before 1573
- Medium: Engraving
- Dimensions: Sheet: 4 1/8 × 4 1/2 in. (10.4 × 11.5 cm)
Plate: 3 1/4 × 2 1/2 in. (8.2 × 6.4 cm) - Classifications: Prints, Ornament & Architecture
- Credit Line: The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949
- Object Number: 49.8.7
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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