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The Northern Renaissance

Dürer's prints, Holbein's portraits and the art of northern Europe in the 1500s.

62 works · hang 1866 ·

The rooms are imagined; every work on their walls is real.

Walk this roomRehang this room

Section 1, north wall

  1. This painting shows a man from the waist up. He is facing forward and gazes out at us. He has fair skin, light brown hair, a thin mustache and beard, and light green eyes. His expression is mostly neutral, although his peach lips are slightly turned up at the edges. He is wearing a black garment with a high collar and a hood and a black flat cap on his head. The background is plain blue, fading to black around the edges of the painting.
    Portrait of a ManCorneille de Lyon, c. 1536/1540Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Amya Petitioning Faustus for the Custody of Saint Mamas, by Jean Cousin the Elder, ca. 1543
    Amya Petitioning Faustus for the Custody of Saint MamasJean Cousin the Elder, ca. 1543Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. The Seed Received among the Thorns, from the Parable of the Sower, by Gerard P. van Groningen, c. 1573
    The Seed Received among the Thorns, from the Parable of the SowerGerard P. van Groningen, c. 1573Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 1, south wall

  1. A work made of engraving on paper.
    Spes, plate 2 from The Seven VirtuesHieronymous Wierix, c. 1598Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. We look slightly down onto a scene with people gathering in small groups in a cobblestone town square lined with rows of brick, wood, and stone buildings, many with stepped rooflines, in this horizontal painting. Singly or in pairs or trios, men, women, and children walk across the square, move goods around, or talk to merchants. All the people have light skin. Many of the men have mustaches and wear hats, and some carry swords. In tones of black, olive green, brick red, and plum purple, they wear hip-length cloaks over jackets, with white collars or ruffs and brass buttons, and knee-length breeches over yellow or black stockings. The women all wear long dresses in salmon pink, coral red, or golden yellow, with white collars or ruffs, and many wear black, ankle-length cloaks, some with hoods. Closest to us, a sumptuously dressed man and woman walk toward us while another similarly elegant couple walks away. Also facing away from us, to our left, a man wearing a large drum strapped around his waist raises one drumstick as he looks over his left shoulder. Nearby, a woman peers up out of a cellar door that opens on an angle to the street. More couples gather around a well across the square, and two women and a child talk to a third woman selling wares at a wooden table to our right. A pair of hooded priests or monks walk near a man blowing on a trumpet on horseback. The buildings are mostly shades of brick red and brown, and most have three or four stories with steeply pitched roofs. More people walk along side streets leading off the main square. One gap in the buildings across from us leads to a nickel-gray stone church with a pointed spire and square tower. A grassy, green hill rises steeply beyond the buildings to our right, leading down to a waterway that extends up and away into the distance. A few boats float in the water, which reflects the leaden-gray sky. Beyond the town square, a brown stone structure like a fortress with turret towers and crenellated walls looms along the ridge of the hill to our right. Tiny in scale, people on horseback and tending sheep dot the hillside below. The date “1590” is painted on the front of one of the buildings across from us while another date, “1597,” is painted on the end of a short wall near the lower left corner.
    The Marketplace in Bergen op ZoomAbel Grimmer, probably 1590 and 1597Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 2, south wall

  1. Still Life with Flowers, a Snail and Insects, by Joris Hoefnagel, 1589
    Still Life with Flowers, a Snail and InsectsJoris Hoefnagel, 1589Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of engraving on ivory laid paper.
    Fides, plate 1 from The Seven VirtuesHieronymous Wierix, c. 1598Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. TWO GALLEYS AT SEA
    Two Galleys at SeaJan van der Straet, called Stradanus, ca. 1587 – 1590Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Section 2, north wall

  1. Hermann von Wedigh III (died 1560), by Hans Holbein the Younger, 1532
    Hermann von Wedigh III (died 1560)Hans Holbein the Younger, 1532Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Ice skaters on the Amstel in Amsterdam, by Hans Bol, 1589
    Ice skaters on the Amstel in AmsterdamHans Bol, 1589Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. Diana and Actaeon, by Bartholomeus Spranger, ca. 1580–85
    Diana and ActaeonBartholomeus Spranger, ca. 1580–85Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 3, north wall

  1. The image shows an elderly man seated from the waist up. He is angled slightly away from the viewer, resting his head on one hand and leaning on the other arm. The man has a deeply lined face, a large beard, curly hair, and appears focused on something outside the frame. He wears flowing garments and a book is under his arm. In the background, there are rugged, mountainous rock formations. Ornate text frames the image at the bottom.
    Saint AndrewHendrick Goltzius, probably 1589Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Bacchanal, by Nicolas Poussin, ca. 1635–36
    BacchanalNicolas Poussin, ca. 1635–36Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. This is a painting depicting a heraldic coat of arms. The image features a detailed coat of arms with a central shield, adorned with black and gold sections, and additional decorative elements above it. There is a figure resembling a unicorn emerging from the crest. The background is a deep red hue. The artwork is displayed within a wooden frame with crossbars. This style is associated with displaying family crests and lineage.
    Hans Roth [reverse]Bernhard Strigel, 1527Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 3, south wall

  1. Study of Eleven Heads, by Jacques de Gheyn II, late 16th–early 17th century
    Study of Eleven HeadsJacques de Gheyn II, late 16th–early 17th centuryCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Portrait of Cosimo de' Medici in full armor, his left hand resting on a staff, by Niccolò della Casa, 1544
    Portrait of Cosimo de' Medici in full armor, his left hand resting on a staffNiccolò della Casa, 1544Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art