The Fates
c. 1600
Medium
Engraving on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 30.2 × 21.1 cm (11 15/16 × 8 5/16 in.)
Classification
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
268293
Art Historical Context
### The Fates Step into the intricate world of Jacob Matham *The Fates* (c. 1600), a masterful engraving on ivory laid paper now housed in the Art Institute of Chicago’s Prints and Drawings Department. Measuring a trimmed sheet of 302 × 21.1 cm, this captures the ancient Greek mythological figures—Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos—who govern human destiny by spinning, measuring, and severing the thread of life. Matham, a prominent Dutch engraver from Haarlem, showcases his virtuosity through precise incisions on a copper plate, a technique that allowed for rich tonal contrasts and fine details whe...
About the Artist
Jacob Matham · 1571–1631
**Jacob Matham: Master Engraver of Haarlem** Jacob Matham was born on October 15, 1571, in Haarlem, in the Northern Netherlands, into a burgeoning artistic milieu. Following his father's early death, his mother married the renowned painter and engraver Hendrick Goltzius in 1579, who adopted the young Jacob and trained him rigorously in the workshop as his stepson and pupil. Matham's first signed ...