Woman from Strasbourg (Mulier Argentinensis)

Wenceslaus Hollar

1642–44 · Etching and engraving; only state · 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 Strasbourg stands in profile wearing a dark fur hat with a pointed crown, and a ruff. Her white apron falls over a dark coat with fur collar, fur-trimmed dress, muff, and shoes decorated with ribbon rosettes. The artist's series of fifty costume prints titled Aula Veneris, was mostly published in London in 1644. As a group, the images record the appearance of women in European cities and regions, including details that reflect marital and economic status.

Artist

Wenceslaus Hollar

Date

1642–44

Medium

Etching and engraving; only state

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

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