The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

The Holy Family with Saint Elizabeth

The Holy Family with Saint Elizabeth

c. 1503
(Italian, 1440/50-before 1515)
Italy, 16th century
engraving
Platemark: 12.8 x 16.3 cm (5 1/16 x 6 7/16 in.); Sheet: 13.3 x 16.6 cm (5 1/4 x 6 9/16 in.)
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1930.575
Catalogue raisonné: Hind V.151.5 ; Bartsch VII.518.4
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Before scholars identified all the works of Jacopo de' Barbari by name, he was called "Master of the Caduceus" for the symbol of a Mercury's staff with which he often signed his prints, seen here at lower right.

Description

While this landscape might seem desolate and strange, it is rife with religious symbolism. The Virgin Mary and Christ on the right sit with Mary’s cousin, Saint Elizabeth, and her son, Saint John the Baptist. The Bible describes Elizabeth as past childbearing age; both she and Mary were granted virgin births by God. The barren trees, therefore, signify Elizabeth’s
infertility, while the fencelike enclosure denotes the enclosed garden of virginity. The trees also remind viewers of Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden. Jacopo de’ Barbari placed lively grapevines on the dying trees, a metaphor for Christ.
  • ?–1930
    (M. Knoedler & Co., Inc., New York, NY), sold to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    October 27, 1930–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Love Gardens / Forbidden Fruit. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 2-October 29, 2023).
    The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941).
    Seasonal Prints from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 9, 1937-February 27, 1938).
    Prints of the Fifteenth to Twentieth Century from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (June 5-September 12, 1934).
    Italian and German Prints of the 15th Century. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 29, 1933-January 3, 1934).
  • {{cite web|title=The Holy Family with Saint Elizabeth|url=false|author=Jacopo de' Barbari|year=c. 1503|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1930.575