Sacrifice to Priapus, the smaller plate

1501·Engraving on ivory laid paper·9.7 × 10.8 cm (3 7/8 × 4 5/16 in.)

<p>The medical term <em>priapism</em> is derived from the name of the minor fertility god Priapus, whose permanently erect phallus is carefully washed in this sacrificial scene. Jacopo de’ Barbari also produced a larger engraving (1935.102 and 1956.999) in which the god’s phallus is obscured by smoke. The ceremonies depicted in these prints would have been intended to enhance the women’s fertility and their sons’ virility. The winged staff of Hermes doubles as the artist’s monogram in both prints; its placement on Priapus’s plinth may refer to the practice of erecting guideposts with Hermes’ portrait near roads to help lost travelers. Like the statue in this work, these pillars would have included sculpted, protruding genitalia, as in the Master of 1515’s engraving of Cleopatra (1951.374).</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1501
Medium: Engraving on ivory laid paper
Dimensions: 9.7 × 10.8 cm (3 7/8 × 4 5/16 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Jacopo de' Barbari

Artist

Jacopo de' Barbari

Painting

Jacopo de' Barbari, sometimes known or referred to as de'Barbari, de Barberi, de Barbari, Barbaro, Barberino, Barbarigo or Barberigo, was an Italian painter, printmaker and miniaturist with a highly individual style. He moved from Venice to Germany in 1500, thus becoming the first Italian Renaissance artist of stature to work in Northern Europe. His few surviving paintings include the first known example of trompe-l'œil since antiquity. His twenty-nine engravings and three very large woodcuts were also highly influential.

Nuremberg

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