Taste from The Five Senses 1561

Cornelis Cort made this engraving, “Taste,” around 1570 in the Netherlands as part of a series on the five senses. It depicts a woman daintily slicing fruit from a basket, perhaps to share. A monkey reaches for some of the fruit, too. Visual codes from classical antiquity, such as the idealized human form, are used to elevate the image. The picture is an allegory, a symbolic representation of a concept. In this case, the sense of taste. Representations of the five senses had become popular in the 16th century, fueled by an expanding market of collectors. The engraving embodies the values of its time: the idea of refined sensual experience, and the emergence of a market for art. To fully understand this work, we might consider the social rituals of dining during this period, the class dynamics of who has access to such fine foods, and how such images of luxury reflect the economic and social conditions of the time.