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The Virtues of Christ and the Wickedness of His Enemies Symbolized by Diverse Birds and Beasts (verso); The Last Supper (recto), pages 66 and 65 from the Treasury (Schatzbehalter)

A work made of woodcut on ivory laid paper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of woodcut on ivory laid paper.

Date:

1491

Artist:

Michael Wolgemut and Workshop (German, 1434/37–1519)
published by Anton Koberger (German, 1440–1513)

About this artwork

This curious allegory of Christ shows him in a wood surrounded by a wide variety of creatures embodying his virtues and the vices of his enemies. At his feet appear his foes—as a lion, bear, dog, fox, wolf and unicorn—while his intrinsic goodness causes an elephant, lamb, dove, pelican, eagle and owl, among other birds to emerge from behind his halo.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Michel Wolgemut

Title

The Virtues of Christ and the Wickedness of His Enemies Symbolized by Diverse Birds and Beasts (verso); The Last Supper (recto), pages 66 and 65 from the Treasury (Schatzbehalter)

Place

Germany (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1491

Medium

Woodcut on ivory laid paper

Dimensions

Image/block, verso: 25.3 × 17.7 cm (10 × 7 in.); Sheet: 25.9 × 18.1 cm (10 1/4 × 7 3/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer, Jr.

Reference Number

1937.90a-b

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/23397/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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