Art Institute of Chicago

The Triumph of Love, plate one from The Triumphs of Petrarch

Georg Pencz

c. 1539

Attribution

Georg Pencz German, c. 1500-1550

Medium

Engraving in black on ivory laid paper

Physical dimensions

Plate/sheet: 14.3 × 20.8 cm (5 11/16 × 8 1/4 in.)

Credit line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer

From the museum

The German painter and printmaker Georg Pencz is known as one of the Little Masters ( Kleinmeister ), along with brothers Barthel and Sebald Beham. These artists were active in Nuremberg, where they likely worked for Albrecht Dürer. They produced jewellike engravings on a small scale. Although still modestly sized, these six Triumphs are some of Pencz’s largest engravings. He traveled throughout Italy around 1539, where he found inspiration in the celebrated 14th-century Triumphs by the poet Petrarch: Love is at first victorious, but Chastity conquers; Fame defeats Chastity, then Time ends Fame’s rule; next, Death stops Time. Finally, Eternity triumphs over Death.

Description: Art Institute of Chicago · CC BY 4.0