Artwork Page for The Abduction of a Sabine Woman

Details / Information for The Abduction of a Sabine Woman

The Abduction of a Sabine Woman

1584

Andrea Andreani

(Italian, about 1558–1610)

after Giambologna

(Flemish, active Italy, 1529–1608)
Culture
Italy, 16th century
Medium
chiaroscuro woodcut
Credit Line
Gift of The Print Club of Cleveland 1925.1221
Catalogue raisonné
Bartsch XII.93.2
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
?

Did You Know?

The Abduction of a Sabine Woman is the first attempt in the chiaroscuro technique by Andrea Andreani, as well as the first chiaroscuro ever to depict a work of sculpture.

Description

A pinnacle of sculpture in the generation after Michelangelo was Giambologna’s Abduction of the Sabine Women, depicted here in a contemporaneous print by Andrea Andreani. Giambologna created a twisting harmony of three forms that capture the narrative of a Roman male abducting a Sabine woman and vanquishing a Sabine male below. Giambologna’s sculpture was installed in Florence in the public piazza near Michelangelo’s David.
A vertically oriented woodcut on tan paper depicts three interlocking figures using tonal shading. At the bottom, a bearded man crouches on a stone base, raising a hand in alarm. Above him, a muscular man lifts a nude woman who twists upward, reaching toward the sky with her right arm. Bold black outlines define their spiraling forms. In the lower right, a rectangular block contains Latin text.

The Abduction of a Sabine Woman

1584

Andrea Andreani, Giambologna

(Italian, about 1558–1610), (Flemish, active Italy, 1529–1608)
Italy, 16th century

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