Artwork Page for Hercules

Details / Information for Hercules

Hercules

c. 1496–97

Albrecht Dürer

(German, 1471–1528)
Culture
Germany, late 15th Century
Medium
woodcut
Measurements
Platemark: 39.1 x 28.5 cm (15 3/8 x 11 1/4 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of The Print Club of Cleveland 1926.107
Catalogue raisonné
Meder 238
State
I/III
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Even though Dürer entitled this work Ercules, the narrative of the representation remains highly debated. The most recent interpretation suggests that Dürer adapted the scene from an obscure Roman tragedy, one he may have learned through his humanist friends. The story describes how prior to Hercules’ first heroic labor, the goddess Juno incited within him a monstrous rage. This resulted in the killing of a tyrant, seen under Hercules’ left foot, and the murder of his own family, represented here by his frightened wife Megara. A maniacal old woman-a Fury, goddess of vengeance and the embodiment of Hercules’ rage-prepares to assail Megara with an animal jawbone. According to this reading then, women are the source and manifestation of Hercules’ murderous wrath, an obvious contrast to his later heroism.
A vertically oriented print in black ink on cream paper depicts Hercules, a muscular man with a light skin tone wearing a lion skin. He steps on a fallen man in armor while facing a woman with long hair. Behind him, an older nude woman with a light skin tone raises a jawbone. Gnarled trees frame the landscape, which features a distant city and sea. A scroll at the top is inscribed "Ercules."

Hercules

c. 1496–97

Albrecht Dürer

(German, 1471–1528)
Germany, late 15th Century

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