ALBRECHT DÜRER (1471 Nürnberg 1528) 
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The Cook and his Wife. (1496) In this print, an unshaven, overweight man is depicted wearings grungy clothes and holdings a frying pan and cooking spoon in his hand. With his untidy appearance, he stands in stark contrast to his companion, who can be recognized as a Nuremberg woman by her clothing. She wears a hood, a bag and a key, the characteristic attributes of a housewife. In addition, she also carries a spoon, which can be seen as an element connecting the figures. The bird with beating wings that has settled on the man’s shoulder is difficult to interpret. The sheet has been titled “The Cook and his Wife” since the 18th century. Nevertheless, there were several other attempts to explain the sheet. It was only in 1907 that K. Lange suggested the story from “Der Ritter von Thurn”, which was published in Basel in 1493 and to which Albrecht Durer also contributed some illustrations. “Die Atzel (Elster), die vom Aal schwätzt” is the story of a husband who keeps an eel in a tub to eat occasionally. His wife, however, beats him to it and prepares the fish for herself and her lover. The magpie betrayed the woman to her husband and in return, the man plucked the feathers on it's head. The story goes that whenever the magpie saw a bald head it cried: “You have gossiped about the eel” This story must have been very well known because Durer illustrated it without explanatory text. Superb and early impression before all wiping marks and scratches as described by Meder for early states.
Dimensions: 10.8 : 7.8 cm Provenance: Count Karl Paar (Lugt 2009); Hyppolite Dreux (Lugt 1302); A. Firmin – Didot (Lugt 119); Kunsthandlung Helmut H. Rumbler; Private Collection Germany
30000,- EUR
inkl. 7% USt./incl. 7% VAT
Sachgebiete: Deutschland, Graphik, Kunstgeschichte, Kupferstich, Renaissance
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