Saturn, plate 47 from Planets and Spheres
Master of the E-Series Tarocchi
1460–1470
- Medium
- Engraving on paper
- Dimensions
- Image: 16.8 × 9.8 cm (6 5/8 × 3 7/8 in.); Plate: 17.9 × 10.1 cm (7 1/16 × 4 in.); Sheet: 18.5 × 10.5 cm (7 5/16 × 4 3/16 in.)
- Genre
- engraving
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Tags
engravingprintprints and drawingpaper (fiber product)
About
Saturn is part of a 50-card set known as the Tarocchi, which were not tarot cards but which probably served a didactic purpose as a memory game. The unknown artist worked in a strongly linear, dry style with a touch of the grotesque. These engravings emphasize the gods’ mythology over their astrological significance. The prints present curious details, such as Saturn devouring his particularly tiny children (who would survive and later defeat him).
