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The Organ Player and His Wife

1495–1500
(German, c. 1440–1503)
Germany, 15th century
engraving
Image: 16.6 x 11 cm (6 9/16 x 4 5/16 in.); Sheet: 16.6 x 11 cm (6 9/16 x 4 5/16 in.)
Delia E. Holden Fund 1960.73
Catalogue raisonné: Lehrs IX.397.507
State: undescribed state/III
Location: not on view
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Description

In a cozy, domestic setting, an organ player plays a portative with four registers. His wife operates the two bellows, producing the wind that gives the instrument its sound. The activity of one would be inconceivable and pointless without the other. The music they create together--as well as the faithful dog placed prominently in the foreground--refers to marital harmony.
The Organ Player and His Wife

The Organ Player and His Wife

1495–1500

Israhel van Meckenem

(German, c. 1440–1503)
Germany, 15th century

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