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A Man Caressing the Young Hostess
Cornelis Pietersz. Bega1660/64
- Attribution
- Cornelis Pietersz Bega Dutch, 1631/32-1664
- Medium
- Etching in black on ivory laid paper
- Physical dimensions
- Image: 19.8 × 16.5 cm (7 13/16 × 6 1/2 in.); Sheet, trimmed within platemark: 22.6 × 17.3 cm (8 15/16 × 6 13/16 in.)
- Credit line
- John H. Wrenn Memorial Collection
CATALOGUE RECORD
Museum metadata is available under CC0. Image availability and rights are separate; consult the source record.
Source rights statement: Public domain
View the museum record ↗From the museum
Cornelis Pietersz Bega’s talents were wide-ranging—from painting and drawing to etching—and genre scenes of everyday Dutch life were his principal subjects. In this etching, Bega depicted an interaction between lecherous drunkards and a young tavern hostess. On the makeshift barrel table are a bottle of alcohol and coals for the pipe. The ace of spades, one of the three playing cards scattered on the ground, symbolizes death, suggesting the work’s moralizing message.
Description: Art Institute of Chicago · CC BY 4.0