The Triumph of Death
 |
|
| Artist | Pieter Bruegel the Elder |
|---|---|
| Year | c. 1562 |
| Type | oil on panel |
| Dimensions | 117 cm × 162 cm (46 in × 63.8 in) |
| Location | Museo del Prado, Madrid |
The Triumph of Death is an oil panel painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder painted c. 1562.[1] It has in been the Museo del Prado in Madrid since 1827.[2]
The painting shows a panorama of an army of skeletons wreaking havoc across a blackened, desolate landscape. Fires burn in the distance, and the sea is littered with shipwrecks. A few leafless trees stud hills otherwise bare of vegetation; fish lie rotting on the shores of a corpse-choked pond. Art historian James Snyder emphasizes the "scorched, barren earth, devoid of any life as far as the eye can see."[1] In this setting, legions of skeletons advance on the living, who either flee in terror or try in vain to fight back. In the foreground, skeletons haul a wagon full of skulls; in the upper left corner, others ring the bell that signifies the death knell of the world. A fool plays the lute while a skeleton behind him plays along; a starving dog nibbles at the face of a child; a cross sits in the center of the painting. People are herded into a trap decorated with crosses, while a skeleton on horseback kills people with a scythe. The painting depicts people of different social backgrounds – from peasants and soldiers to nobles as well as a king and a cardinal – being taken by death indiscriminately.[3]
The painting shows aspects of everyday life in the mid-sixteenth century. Clothes are clearly depicted, as are pastimes such as playing cards and backgammon. It shows objects such as musical instruments, an early mechanical clock, scenes including a funeral service, and various methods of execution, including the breaking wheel, the gallows, and the headsman.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Snyder, James (1985). Northern Renaissance Art: Painting, Sculpture, the Graphic Arts from 1350 to 1575. New York: Harry N. Abrams. p. 486. ISBN 0-8109-1081-0.
- ^ Pallucchini, Anna; Ragghianti, Carlo Ludovicio; Collobi, Licia Ragghianti (1968). Prado, Madrid. Great Museums of the World. New York: Newsweek. p. 134.
- ^ Woodward, Richard B. (February 14, 2009). "Death Takes No Holiday". The Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123456346044885861.html. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: The Triumph of Death by Peter Bruegel |
