Horizontal Panel with Triton and Child Surrounded by Foliage 1525 - 1561

Heinrich Aldegrever made this engraving of a triton and child surrounded by foliage in the 16th century. In Northern Europe at this time, the Italian Renaissance was in full swing, and artists were captivated by classical antiquity. This print is characteristic of this historical moment, and the artist would have likely studied classical sculpture and ornament to inform the image. But unlike wealthy Italian artists working for the church or state, Aldegrever was one of many German artists who were more independent. He and others like him were making art for a growing market of collectors, many of whom were middle-class merchants and traders. Prints such as this would have helped disseminate new visual ideas and classical forms in a way that paintings and sculptures never could. To fully understand this image, we can research German art of the period, the history of ornament, and the print market in the 1500s.