Modesty, from The Virtues
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet: 4 1/8 × 2 7/16 in. (10.4 × 6.2 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Felix M. Warburg and his family, 1941
Accession Number
41.1.110
Tags
Art Historical Context
Heinrich Aldegre, a masterful German engraver of the Renaissance known as one of the "Little Masters for his exquisite small-scale works, created *Modesty, from The Virtues* in 1552. This engraving belongs to a series personifying moral virtues, a popular theme in Northern European art during the Reformation era. At just 4 1/8 × 2 7/16 inches, it exemplifies the precision of 16th-century printmaking, where intricate lines conveyed profound symbolism on intimate sheets designed for collectors' cabinets or devotional use. The composition likely centers on a female figure embodying Modesty, acco...
About the Artist
Heinrich Aldegrever · 1502–1561
Heinrich Aldegrever, born in 1502 in Paderborn, Westphalia, to parents Herman and Katherine Trippenmeker—a family of clog-makers known by the dialect name Trippenmecker—emerged as a multifaceted artist in the German Renaissance. His early training remains undocumented, though he likely apprenticed in a Soest goldsmith's workshop after relocating there around 1525, where he joined the painters' gui...