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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 992 ·

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

Walk this roomRehang this room

First room, north wall

  1. Saint John on Patmos, by Hans Baldung (called Hans Baldung Grien), ca. 1511
    Saint John on PatmosHans Baldung (called Hans Baldung Grien), ca. 1511Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. The image shows a pattern of vertical and horizontal wooden bars forming a grid-like design. In the center, there is a rectangular panel with a decorative emblem against a red background. The emblem features swirling shapes. The structured wooden grid and ornate emblem suggest a vintage heraldic shield or coat of arms.
    Margarethe Vöhlin [reverse]Bernhard Strigel, 1527Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. TWO GALLEYS AT SEA
    Two Galleys at SeaJan van der Straet, called Stradanus, ca. 1587 – 1590Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  4. 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

First room, south wall

  1. The image shows a landscape with a city in the distance, a castle on a cliff, fields, forests, and two figures with a dog hunting. There are sailboats on water and houses on farmland. The style is detailed with etching lines in sepia tones.
    The Rabbit HuntersPieter Bruegel, 1560Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Phaeton, from "The Four Disgracers", by Hendrick Goltzius, 1588
    Phaeton, from "The Four Disgracers"Hendrick Goltzius, 1588Courtesy 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
  4. A work made of engraving on paper.
    Spes, plate 2 from The Seven VirtuesHieronymous Wierix, c. 1598Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Second room, south wall

  1. The image features a celestial scene with multiple figures depicted from head to waist. Two central figures are engaged in a conversation amidst clouds. One figure appears seated, possibly on a throne, holding a book. Both figures have long hair and beards. The robes worn by the figures are detailed. Other figures surround them in a semi-circle, some wearing crowns, holding items like bowls. Heavenly hosts with wings are seen above. The background shows a detailed landscape with trees, a river, and castles nestled in hills.
    Saint John before God and the EldersAlbrecht Dürer, probably c. 1496/1498Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Three insects are depicted in the image: a butterfly with dark blue and red wings on the bottom left, a larger butterfly with white, black, and blue patterns at the top center, and a dragonfly with brown and gold tones on the bottom right. The color palette includes rich blues, reds, browns, and golds against a neutral background. The central butterfly is positioned higher than the other two insects, with the left butterfly and right dragonfly symmetrically arranged below.
    Plate 13: Yellow Swallowtail and Red Admiral Butterflies with a Dragonfly (Broad-Bodied Chaser?)Joris Hoefnagel, c.1575/1590sCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. 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
  4. Leaf from a Book of Hours: The Nativity (recto) and Text (verso), c. 1430
    Leaf from a Book of Hours: The Nativity (recto) and Text (verso)Unrecorded French maker, c. 1430Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. 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
  2. Virgin and Child with Saint Anne, by Albrecht Dürer, probably 1519
    Virgin and Child with Saint AnneAlbrecht Dürer, probably 1519Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. 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
  4. This is a drawing of a wilderness setting by a river. The scene features rocky cliffs, lush vegetation, a large bearded figure holding a staff, and a small cherubic figure beside them. In the background, there is a village against a mountainous backdrop. The drawing has rich texture and intricate details, with a contrast of dark lines and lighter hues.
    Saint ChristopherLucas Cranach the Elder, 1506Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington