Design for an Engraved Tazza with an Allegory of Charity

A circular engraved design framed by dense scrollwork, grotesque masks, and reclining nude figures, with lettered inscriptions running around the rim. At the centre, a seated mother holds a child beside a small attendant figure, while a crowded scene fills the lower medallion below.

Artist

Theodor de Bry

Date

ca. 1588

Medium

Engraving on laid paper

Source

Smithsonian (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum)

Size

2154 × 2240 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): Smithsonian Institution, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum