The image depicts a printed page with ornate medieval illustrations and Latin text. The central illustration shows an eagle holding a scroll, surrounded by floral motifs and heraldic elements, including a shield with a double-headed eagle. Flanking the central image are smaller panels: on the left, a cherubic figure stands with animals, and below it, a lion's head encircled by Baroque flourishes and the text "S S M A R C V S"; on the right, an angelic figure appears above a bull's head with the text "S L V C A S". The text below the images is in Latin script, spread in a multi-column format with decorative capital letters. The illustrations incorporate detailed line work typical of Renaissance woodcut prints.
Read the visual description

The image depicts a printed page with ornate medieval illustrations and Latin text. The central illustration shows an eagle holding a scroll, surrounded by floral motifs and heraldic elements, including a shield with a double-headed eagle. Flanking the central image are smaller panels: on the left, a cherubic figure stands with animals, and below it, a lion's head encircled by Baroque flourishes and the text "S S M A R C V S"; on the right, an angelic figure appears above a bull's head with the text "S L V C A S". The text below the images is in Latin script, spread in a multi-column format with decorative capital letters. The illustrations incorporate detailed line work typical of Renaissance woodcut prints.

National Gallery of Art · Print

Allegory of the Eagle and Emperor Maximilian I

German 15th Century

Date
1497
Medium
woodcut
Classification
Print
Accession number
1943.3.644
Credit line
Rosenwald Collection
Time span
1401 to 1500
Department
CG-E

Subjects and terms

  • plant
  • bird
  • animal
  • Cow
  • Strasbourg
  • Figures
  • Writing
  • Apostles
Provenance

Martin Aufhäuser [1875-1944], Munich, Holland, and Los Angeles; [1] Lessing J. Rosenwald, Jenkintown, PA; gift to NGA, 1943. [1] For complete information on Aufhäuser's collection, see Rosenwald Papers, box 9, and Richard S. Field, _Fifteenth Century Woodcuts and Metalcuts_, Washington, D.C., 1965, Preface (np).

NGA object ID 3858. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.