The Fall of Phaeton
late 16th–early 17th century
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brown wash, heightened with white (slightly oxidized); brown ink framing lines; incised for transfer
Dimensions
6 1/2 x 9 15/16 in. (16.5 x 25.3 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1992
Accession Number
1992.376
Tags
Art Historical Context
This dynamic drawing by Hendrick Goltzius captures the dramatic climax of the Greek myth of Phaeton, who disastrously attempted to drive the chariot of the sun. As the youth loses control, Zeus hurls a thunderbolt from above, sending the chariot plunging toward earth. Created in the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century, the scene reflects the period’s fascination with classical mythology and the theatrical possibilities of dramatic action. Goltzius, a leading Dutch draftsman and printmaker of the era, used pen and brown ink with wash and white heightening to create luminous contrasts a...
About the Artist
Hendrick Goltzius · 1558–1617
Hendrick Goltzius (1558–1617) was the most celebrated engraver of the Northern Renaissance and a pivotal figure in Dutch Mannerism. Born near the German-Dutch border, Goltzius transformed printmaking into a virtuoso art form through his revolutionary 'swelling line' technique, where the burin was manipulated to create lines of varying thickness that produced unprecedented tonal effects and three-d...