Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index

Title: Four Witches/Four Naked Women
Creator: Dürer, Albrecht, artist
Description: Four nude women stand in a circle, one with elaborately braided hair and one wearing an ostentatious headpiece. Their massiveness and contrapposto stances suggest classical inspiration, and the artist has arranged them so as to depict the nude female form from as many positions as possible: front, side, and rear. The human skull at the circle's center and the demon in the doorway to the left suggest unholy activity. This image was created shortly after the publication of the Malleus Maleficarum [Hammer of Witches] (1486) and demonstrates the contemporary fear of and interest in witches—and how often unbridled female sexuality was considered a quality of evil women.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Rights: Public domain
Subject (See Also): Classical Influences Demons Nude Sexuality Witches
Geographic Area: Germany
Century: 15
Date: 1497
Related Work:
Current Location: Nuremburg, Germanisches Nationalmuseum
Original Location:
Artistic Type (Category): Digital images; Prints
Artistic Type (Material/Technique): Engravings
Donor:
Height/Width/Length(cm): 13.1 cm/19 cm/
Inscription:
Related Resources: