The Marriage Scales 1590 - 1594
hendrickgoltzius
rijksmuseum
engraving
allegory
old engraving style
figuration
pen-ink sketch
line
genre-painting
northern-renaissance
engraving
"The Marriage Scales" is an engraving by Dutch artist Hendrick Goltzius, created between 1590 and 1594. It is a complex allegory of marriage, with a central figure suspended on scales while being pulled in opposite directions by two pairs of hands representing opposing forces. The artwork, held in the Rijksmuseum, showcases Goltzius's mastery of detail and anatomical precision, characteristic of Northern Renaissance art. The intricate composition, with its blend of allegorical figures and everyday elements, invites viewers to decipher the nuanced meaning of the marriage contract, a theme frequently explored in Goltzius's oeuvre.
Comments
A man and woman are sitting on a large pair of scales and being weighed. The bride, holding an open chest of coins, is clearly much richer than the groom, with his bag of coins between his legs. Cupid steals off carrying a sack on his back; there is nothing for him to do, for this is no love match.
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