About this artwork
This anonymous engraving after Hendrick Goltzius depicts a seemingly omnipotent doctor analyzing a urine flask. The two competing paths of contemporary medicine appear in the background throughout the series. On the left, a more theoretical medical doctor attends a sickbed, while on the right, a practical surgeon tends to a man with broken limbs from a fall (the accident appears through the window). The central physician figure undergoes a transformation in plates two through four, progressing from an angel (when his patient improves slightly), to a man (when he has nearly cured his charge), and finally to a devil (when he proposes his fee).
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Prints and Drawings
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Artist
- Hendrick Goltzius
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Title
- The Physician Considered as God, plate one from Allegories of the Medical Profession.
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Date
- 1582–1592
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Medium
- Engraving on paper
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Dimensions
- 174 × 225 mm (image); 185 × 225 mm (plate/sheet)
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Credit Line
- Gift of Dr. Ira Frank
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Reference Number
- 1944.493
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/51100/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.
