Brabant Noblewoman (Nobilis Mulier Brabantica)

Johannes Meyssens|Wenceslaus Hollar

1649 · Etching and engraving; second state of two · Drawings and Prints

Wenceslaus Hollar was one of the most important printmakers of the seventeenth century. His technical virtuosity and his ability to render things, places, and people with astonishing detail and truthfulness has been highly regarded since his lifetime. Here, a woman from looks at us, wearing a ruff, laced bodice, and apron over her skirt, and holding the hood of her cloak with both hands. The artist's series of fifty costume prints titled Aula Veneris, was mostly published in London in 1644; the present work comes from a group that Hollar added a few years later after moving to Antwerp. As a group, the images record the appearance of women in European cities and regions, including details that reflect marital and economic status.

Artist

Johannes Meyssens|Wenceslaus Hollar

Date

1649

Medium

Etching and engraving; second state of two

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Barbara E. Fox, from the Collection of Howard A. Fox, MD, and Barbara E. Fox, 2021