Studie en ziekte begeleiden de mens op zijn levenweg 1563

"Studie en ziekte begeleiden de mens op zijn levenweg," a 1563 engraving by Philips Galle, depicts a group of figures representing various stages of life, each accompanied by a symbolic dog. The figures, from left to right, are a young boy, a man in his prime, an older man, a man with a wounded leg, and a crippled man, suggesting themes of growth, decline, and the inevitability of suffering. Galle's engraving is a masterful example of Northern Renaissance printmaking, characterized by its detailed and realistic portrayal of the human form. The composition is balanced and harmonious, the figures are rendered with anatomical accuracy, and the background is evocative of the natural world.