Cleveland Museum of Art
The Lovers
Wenzel von Olmütz
- Date
- c. 1490
- Medium
- engraving
- Culture
- Germany
- Department
- Prints
- Institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
In this image, a man and woman sit facing one another; the woman casts her eyes down shyly as the man makes a tender touch, an invitation to love. This artist pared down a garden of love to an arbor with a low fence, a vase of flowers, and a basin of water holding a jug of wine and cup. The love displayed in the garden is chaste, as intended. This is apparent by the wine in the water bath, suggesting cooled desire; the carnations in the vase, symbols of virginity; and the woman’s small dog, a sign of fidelity.
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