The Dance of the Magdalene

Lucas van Leyden

1519 · Engraving · Drawings and Prints

In this large and delicately engraved print, Mary Magdalene is depicted in her worldly life as a courtesan, prior to her conversion. In the foreground, among loving couples, she dances to the music of a piper and a drummer; a fool gestures to her from behind a tree on the left, mocking her sinful behavior. Just beyond, she is on horseback taking part in a hunt. Lucas provided few clues to the religious nature of the subject besides the halo surrounding her head and the minute depiction of her assumption into heaven (in the background to the right of the mountain). This episode in the Magdalene's life had few precedents in the visual arts but was popular in contemporary mystery plays.

Artist

Lucas van Leyden

Date

1519

Medium

Engraving

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Felix M. Warburg and his family, 1941