About this artwork
The contrasting couples in this composition are meant to demonstrate virtuous and sinful love. On the right, a couple in luxurious fabrics embraces, sitting next to a tree rooted in a blackened heart and skull and with monstrous creatures on its thorny branches. To the left stand a man and woman clothed in light robes and holding hands beside a flowering tree, which sprouts from a white heart above the word “Christ.” The inscription reinforces the idea that spiritual love leads to salvation, whereas earthly desire leads to damnation. This print was engraved by Dutch artist Gillis van Breen after a design by Karel van Mander, another artist who belonged to the same social circle.
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Status
- On View, Gallery 213
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Department
- Prints and Drawings
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Artist
- Gillis van Breen
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Title
- Allegory on the Good and the Corrupt Tree
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Place
- Netherlands (Artist's nationality:)
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Date
- 1595–1605
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Medium
- Engraving in black on cream laid paper
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Dimensions
- 19.3 × 28.5 cm (7 5/8 × 11 1/4 in.)
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Credit Line
- Gift of Charles Hack and The Hearn Family Trust
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Reference Number
- 2024.41
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/271908/manifest.json
Extended information about this artwork
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