Floor plan

Time and placeThe 16th century

The 16th century

The image shows a profile of a person's head and partial neck within a circular laurel wreath. The individual has distinct facial features, including a prominent nose and chin. The hairstyle is tight, wavy locks pulled back, and a laurel wreath crowns the head. The background is plain, with an inscription reading "IMP. CAESAR. TRAIANVS. AVG." Below the portrait are the initials "ISB" and the year "1546". The overall style resembles a classical engraving, featuring detailed line work and traditional iconography.
A work made of hanging scroll; ink and color on silk.
The Judgment of Paris, by Lucas Cranach the Elder, ca. 1528
A work made of engraving on three joined sheets of ivory laid paper.
A work made of oil on panel.
This is a drawing of a winged figure with a sheep, accompanied by a mythical creature and cherubs. The central figure is holding the sheep tenderly. On the left, two cherubs are flying with a laurel branch, under the word "PACIENTIA." On the right is a mythical creature with dragon-like features. Below the scene, a plaque with an inscription is placed against the pedestal. The artwork is detailed with lines, cross-hatching, and shading, accentuating textures and forms.
TWO GALLEYS AT SEA

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Works made in the 16th century, anywhere in the world.

First room, north wall

  1. The image shows a profile of a person's head and partial neck within a circular laurel wreath. The individual has distinct facial features, including a prominent nose and chin. The hairstyle is tight, wavy locks pulled back, and a laurel wreath crowns the head. The background is plain, with an inscription reading "IMP. CAESAR. TRAIANVS. AVG." Below the portrait are the initials "ISB" and the year "1546". The overall style resembles a classical engraving, featuring detailed line work and traditional iconography.
    TrajanSebald Beham, 1546Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. A work made of hanging scroll; ink and color on silk.
    Portrait of an OfficialGu Jianlong, Qing dynasty (1644-1911), 17th centuryCourtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. The Judgment of Paris, by Lucas Cranach the Elder, ca. 1528
    The Judgment of ParisLucas Cranach the Elder, ca. 1528Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

First room, south wall

  1. A work made of engraving on three joined sheets of ivory laid paper.
    The Wedding of Cupid and PsycheHendrick Goltzius, 1587Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of oil on panel.
    Domenico da GambassiAndrea del Sarto, 1525–28Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. This is a drawing of a winged figure with a sheep, accompanied by a mythical creature and cherubs. The central figure is holding the sheep tenderly. On the left, two cherubs are flying with a laurel branch, under the word "PACIENTIA." On the right is a mythical creature with dragon-like features. Below the scene, a plaque with an inscription is placed against the pedestal. The artwork is detailed with lines, cross-hatching, and shading, accentuating textures and forms.
    Pacientia (Patience)Sebald Beham, 1540Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  4. TWO GALLEYS AT SEA
    Two Galleys at SeaJan van der Straet, called Stradanus, ca. 1587 – 1590Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Second room, south wall

  1. "The Angel Surush Rescues Khusrau Parviz from a Cul-de-sac", Folio 708v from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp, by Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1530–35
    "The Angel Surush Rescues Khusrau Parviz from a Cul-de-sac", Folio 708v from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah TahmaspAbu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1530–35Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. The deceitful wife ejects the procuress after blackening her face, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night, by Shravana, c. 1560
    The deceitful wife ejects the procuress after blackening her face, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth NightShravana, c. 1560Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. Otto, Count of Nassau and his Wife Adelheid van Vianen, by Bernard van Orley, 1530–35
    Otto, Count of Nassau and his Wife Adelheid van VianenBernard van Orley, 1530–35Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. Portrait of Roberto Castiglione, early 1600s
    Portrait of Roberto CastiglioneUnrecorded Italian maker, early 1600sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. "A King Offers to Make Amends to a Bereaved Mother", Folio from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Amir Khusrau Dihlavi, by Amir Khusrau Dihlavi, 1597–98
    "A King Offers to Make Amends to a Bereaved Mother", Folio from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Amir Khusrau DihlaviAmir Khusrau Dihlavi, 1597–98Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Bright light from the upper left illuminates two muscular men and a winged angel against a dim landscape in this square painting. They all have pale skin, and the two men have dark brown hair and beards. One man, Jesus, stands ankle-deep in a rippling dark blue stream in the center of the composition facing us with downcast eyes. He is nude except for a white cloth that drapes over one shoulder and is tied around his hips. The other end of the cloth drops into the water. Jesus’s hands are pressed together in prayer at chest-height closer to his right shoulder, to our left. He leans his torso in the other direction and looks down at the water. The second man stands on the riverbank to our right. His body faces our left but his left shoulder, closer to us, dips down so his broad back is angled toward us. His lower body is wrapped in a cobalt-blue garment bordered with what looks like sheepskin. His near hand swings back to clutch the trunk of a tree growing immediately behind him. In his other hand, he holds up a pewter-grey dish that dribbles water onto Jesus’s head. On the left riverbank, the copper-haired angel looks on, facing our right in profile but the body faces us. The angel wears a sleeveless, pumpkin-orange robe with a shimmering salmon-pink mantle draped over the right shoulder, to our left. Petal-pink and dark grey wings extend from the shoulders, and the lower legs and feet are bare. The shadowy landscape has a dark green field stretching back to jagged, sapphire-blue mountains along the horizon, which comes four-fifths of the way up this composition. Pale blue clouds skim across the vivid blue sky, where three chubby, winged babies float. One holds a triangle and a rod with which to strike it, and another might hold a rectangular musical instrument. Blue clouds split nearby to show a sliver of golden yellow light, and possibly more angels.
    The Baptism of ChristParis Bordone, c. 1535/1540Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. Dead Blue Roller, by Hans Hoffmann, 1583
    Dead Blue RollerHans Hoffmann, 1583Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Third room, north wall

  1. "The Concourse of the Birds", Folio 11r from a Mantiq al-Tayr (Language of the Birds), by Habiballah of Sava, ca. 1600
    "The Concourse of the Birds", Folio 11r from a Mantiq al-Tayr (Language of the Birds)Habiballah of Sava, ca. 1600Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of hanging scroll; ink, colors, and gold on silk.
    Nehan: Death of the BuddhaUnrecorded Japanese maker, late 17th/early 18th centuryCourtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago