David and Bathsheba
Medium
Engraving; first state of two (Landau)
Dimensions
Sheet: 1 7/8 × 3 1/8 in. (4.8 × 7.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1922
Accession Number
22.36.20
Tags
Art Historical Context
Georg Pencz's *David and Bathshe* is a delicate engraving capturing a pivotal biblical moment from Second Book of Samuel. The scene depicts King David gazing upon Bathsheba as she bathes, her nude form gracefully rendered amid architectural elements and attendants. Created in the first state of two—meaning the earliest, unaltered version—this tiny print (just 1 7/8 × 3 1/8 inches) exemplifies the precision of Renaissance printmaking. Pencz, a German from Nuremberg (c. 1500–1550) and one of the "Little Masters," specialized in small-scale engravings that rivaled painting in detail. Working in ...
About the Artist
Georg Pencz · 1490–1550
Comment on works: Religious; History; Portraits