Artwork Page for The Large Wedding Feast

Details / Information for The Large Wedding Feast

The Large Wedding Feast

1560

Peeter van der Borcht

(Netherlandish, c. 1535–1608)
Culture
Netherlands
Medium
etching with engraving
Measurements
Image: 36.4 x 50.7 cm (14 5/16 x 19 15/16 in.); Sheet: 36.4 x 50.7 cm (14 5/16 x 19 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Carole W. and Charles B. Rosenblatt Endowment Fund 2021.143
Catalogue raisonné
New Hollstein No. 172
State
i/ii
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
?

Did You Know?

Just as today, the couple receives gifts from wedding guests; here, a clerk at the table counts coins while a line of guests wait their turn to present gifts including a salt cellar, stool, candleholder, stockpot, butter churn, distaff, bellows, tongs, and pots.

Description

This 1560 etching by Antwerp artist Peeter van der Borcht is an important part of a tradition depicting peasant fairs, customs, and scenes of daily life with origins in the Low Countries in the 16th century. The protagonist of this expansive scene is the bride, who is seated at the table in the center of the composition. She sits with her arms crossed, wearing a placid expression. There is no food or drink at her table despite the plentiful victuals around her. According to Netherlandish custom, the bride was not permitted to eat or drink until the arrival of the bridegroom, which traditionally took place in the evening.
A horizontally oriented print in black ink depicts a dense outdoor feast. A massive, gnarled tree dominates the background above a woman seated at a central table. Figures dance, drink, and eat throughout, while a bagpiper plays in the center. In the lower right foreground, a person vomits near two large barrels. To the right, others cook over an open fire. Detailed cross-hatching and fine lines shade the crowded scene.

The Large Wedding Feast

1560

Peeter van der Borcht

(Netherlandish, c. 1535–1608)
Netherlands

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