Seated Female Figure 

Adam Elsheimer made this sketch of a seated female figure at an unknown date. The style of the artwork is rooted in the social history of the time, and reflects the period's artistic production and reception. The sketch creates meaning through visual codes and cultural references. Elsheimer, who worked in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, moved from his native Germany to Italy. The seated female figure would have been understood in relation to prevailing ideas about women and their social roles. Was the sketch a quick study for a larger painting? Was it intended to represent a classical allegory? Or was it a reflection on the position of women in contemporary society? To understand the work better, the historian can consult sources such as letters, literature, and accounts of contemporary social mores. Art's meaning is always contingent on its social and institutional context.