This is a detailed drawing with macabre and allegorical motifs. It features skeletal and classical elements. The central design includes two putti on an arch with a skull emblem and a skeletal figure below. Flanking the arch are obelisks with Latin inscriptions. Below, there is a segmented wheel with scenes or symbols, encircled by Latin phrases. Near the bottom, an altar-like structure with Latin inscriptions, skulls, and bones suggests the theme of mortality. The artwork seems to be influenced by Renaissance memento mori imagery.
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This is a detailed drawing with macabre and allegorical motifs. It features skeletal and classical elements. The central design includes two putti on an arch with a skull emblem and a skeletal figure below. Flanking the arch are obelisks with Latin inscriptions. Below, there is a segmented wheel with scenes or symbols, encircled by Latin phrases. Near the bottom, an altar-like structure with Latin inscriptions, skulls, and bones suggests the theme of mortality. The artwork seems to be influenced by Renaissance memento mori imagery.

National Gallery of Art · Print

Allegory on Death

Andrea Andreani after Giovanni Fortuna

Medium
chiaroscuro woodcut
Classification
Print
Accession number
1943.3.854
Credit line
Rosenwald Collection
Time span
1551 to 1600
Department
CG-E

Subjects and terms

  • Italian
  • architecture
  • Seated figure
  • Death
  • chiaroscuro
  • Building
  • Writing

NGA object ID 4071. 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.