Titelprent met een wapenschild met geit, geflankeerd door Fraude en Afgunst 1601

This is Antonio Tempesta’s ‘Titelprent met een wapenschild met geit, geflankeerd door Fraude en Afgunst’, an engraving made in the early 17th century. The composition is dominated by a heraldic shield with a goat, framed by allegorical figures of Fraud and Envy. Tempesta uses dense, intricate lines to create a visually rich surface, the texture of the hatching adding depth and shadow. The symmetry of the shield is destabilized by the dynamic poses of the flanking figures, each embodying moral corruption. This print functions as a commentary on power, ambition, and the darker aspects of human nature. The artist’s use of classical imagery and allegorical figures creates a visual language that is rooted in the artistic traditions of the Renaissance, yet is infused with a critical perspective on contemporary society. Notice how the formal arrangement of elements serves to highlight the tensions between appearance and reality, virtue and vice. It invites us to question fixed meanings and power.