Floor plan

Style galleriesThe Northern Renaissance

The Northern Renaissance

Music-Making Angels, by Albrecht Dürer, 1521
The image shows a woman sitting with a child on her lap. The woman has a gentle expression and long hair, wearing a flowing robe. The child is facing her, reaching up with one hand. In the background are trees, hills, a building, and a fountain with a lion's head spouting water into a basin. The illustration is detailed, capturing textures and elements in the scene.
Saint John on Patmos, by Hans Baldung (called Hans Baldung Grien), ca. 1511
Landscape with a Double Spruce, by Albrecht Altdorfer, ca. 1521–22

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Dürer's prints, Holbein's portraits and the art of northern Europe in the 1500s.

Section 1, north wall

  1. Music-Making Angels, by Albrecht Dürer, 1521
    Music-Making AngelsAlbrecht Dürer, 1521Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. The image shows a woman sitting with a child on her lap. The woman has a gentle expression and long hair, wearing a flowing robe. The child is facing her, reaching up with one hand. In the background are trees, hills, a building, and a fountain with a lion's head spouting water into a basin. The illustration is detailed, capturing textures and elements in the scene.
    Madonna and Child at a FountainMaster MZ, 1501Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 1, south wall

  1. Saint John on Patmos, by Hans Baldung (called Hans Baldung Grien), ca. 1511
    Saint John on PatmosHans Baldung (called Hans Baldung Grien), ca. 1511Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Landscape with a Double Spruce, by Albrecht Altdorfer, ca. 1521–22
    Landscape with a Double SpruceAlbrecht Altdorfer, ca. 1521–22Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, south wall

  1. A Mill with a Fortified Bridge, a Rowing Boat in the Foreground, by Roelandt Savery, 1596–1639
    A Mill with a Fortified Bridge, a Rowing Boat in the ForegroundRoelandt Savery, 1596–1639Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of engraving on paper.
    Title page, from The Seven VicesHieronymous Wierix, c. 1598Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. The Entrance Hall of the Regensburg Synagogue, by Albrecht Altdorfer, 1519
    The Entrance Hall of the Regensburg SynagogueAlbrecht Altdorfer, 1519Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, north wall

  1. Still Life with Flowers, a Snail and Insects, by Joris Hoefnagel, 1589
    Still Life with Flowers, a Snail and InsectsJoris Hoefnagel, 1589Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of engraving in black on cream laid paper.
    The Carnival (or the Prodigal Son)Jan Sadeler, I, 1588Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 3, north wall

  1. The image shows a profile of a person's head and partial neck within a circular laurel wreath. The individual has distinct facial features, including a prominent nose and chin. The hairstyle is tight, wavy locks pulled back, and a laurel wreath crowns the head. The background is plain, with an inscription reading "IMP. CAESAR. TRAIANVS. AVG." Below the portrait are the initials "ISB" and the year "1546". The overall style resembles a classical engraving, featuring detailed line work and traditional iconography.
    TrajanSebald Beham, 1546Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Shown from the waist up, a light-skinned woman sits angled slightly to our right in this vertical portrait painting. The woman has blue eyes, faint brows, and a sloping nose ending in a small bulb. Her upper lip is thin and her lower lip full over a slight double chin. Her blond hair is pulled back under a gold, cap-like headdress and a black, wide-brimmed hat with a shallow crown. She wears a high-necked white, black, and gold dress with intricate detailing, a gold chain necklace that falls to her waist, and a black belt with a gold clasp and medallions. She wears two gold rings set with gems on the pointer finger of her left hand, which is folded across her belly over the other hand. A scarlet-red wallcovering with pink floral designs fills two-thirds of the space behind her. The rightmost third of the background opens onto a landscape with a tall, spindly tree, a leaping animal, presumably a dog, and a bridge across a body of water leading to a town. Across another body of water, perhaps a lake, mountains are marine blue in the distance under a clear, celestial-blue sky.
    Margarethe Vöhlin [obverse]Bernhard Strigel, 1527Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. The image shows a pattern of vertical and horizontal wooden bars forming a grid-like design. In the center, there is a rectangular panel with a decorative emblem against a red background. The emblem features swirling shapes. The structured wooden grid and ornate emblem suggest a vintage heraldic shield or coat of arms.
    Margarethe Vöhlin [reverse]Bernhard Strigel, 1527Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 3, south wall

  1. Ice skaters on the Amstel in Amsterdam, by Hans Bol, 1589
    Ice skaters on the Amstel in AmsterdamHans Bol, 1589Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. TWO GALLEYS AT SEA
    Two Galleys at SeaJan van der Straet, called Stradanus, ca. 1587 – 1590Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Section 4, south wall

  1. The image features a celestial scene with multiple figures depicted from head to waist. Two central figures are engaged in a conversation amidst clouds. One figure appears seated, possibly on a throne, holding a book. Both figures have long hair and beards. The robes worn by the figures are detailed. Other figures surround them in a semi-circle, some wearing crowns, holding items like bowls. Heavenly hosts with wings are seen above. The background shows a detailed landscape with trees, a river, and castles nestled in hills.
    Saint John before God and the EldersAlbrecht Dürer, probably c. 1496/1498Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. This painting shows a man from the waist up. He is facing forward and gazes out at us. He has fair skin, light brown hair, a thin mustache and beard, and light green eyes. His expression is mostly neutral, although his peach lips are slightly turned up at the edges. He is wearing a black garment with a high collar and a hood and a black flat cap on his head. The background is plain blue, fading to black around the edges of the painting.
    Portrait of a ManCorneille de Lyon, c. 1536/1540Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington