| Method | Copper engraving |
| Artist | Philips Galle after Maarten van Heemskerck |
| Published | MHeemskerck Inventor, PGalle fecit. [Antwerp, c.1572-1646] |
| Dimensions | Image 205 x 258 mm, Plate 210 x 262 mm, Sheet 222 x 275 mm |
| Notes |
The Walls of Babylon, one of a set of celebrated engravings of the Seven Wonders of the World engraved by Philips Galle after designs by Maarten van Heemskerck. The image presents a fanciful image of the city of Babylon, with the Tower of Babel and the monumental gatehouse and triple walled tomb of Semiramis conspicuous. On the opposite bank of the Euphrates river, a three-tiered colonnade topped with trees represents the Hanging Gardens. The city teems with life, with soldiers, merchants, and fishermen filling the many squares and open spaces. In the foreground, a crowned figure on horseback, probably intended to be Semiramis, aims her bow at an encroaching lion. A Latin inscription in four lines below the scene reads: Imperiosa sui secta cervice mariti, iussit coctilibus Babylona Semiramis altam Moenibus incingi, lentoque bitumine: Portas adiecit centum, et super his sibi nobile bustum. 'Imperious Semiramis, having cut her husband's throat, ordered high Babylon to be girt with walls of brick, and bitumen mortar: She added a hundred gates, and in addition to these, a famous tomb for herself.' Maarten van Heemskerck (1498-1547) was a Dutch painter and printmaker. He apprenticed in Haarlem with Jan van Scorel and travelled to Italy from 1532 to 1537. He had a very successful career in Haarlem upon his return. As a printmaker he worked exclusively as a designer, collaborating with engravers such as Philips Galle, Cornelis Bos, Dirk Coornhert and Theodor de Bry, often through association with Hieronymus Cock and other publishers. Philips Galle (1537 - 1612) was a Dutch engraver, printmaker, and publisher, particularly celebrated for his reproductive engravings of original works by Hieronymus Cock, Maarten van Heemskerck, Johannes Stradanus, and other Dutch and Flemish masters. Galle's success as an engraver and publisher put him in close contact with many of the late sixteenth century's most important figures, including Ortelius, for whom he produced numerous plates, as well as Christopher Plantin, his students Hendrick Goltzius, Adriaen and Jan Collaert and others. Following his work on Ortelius' Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, Galle produced a series of miniature maps after Ortelius' originals, which he published, potentially without the permission of Ortelius, as the Spieghel der Wereld, the first miniature atlas. New Hollstein Dutch 484-3(3), Hollstein Dutch 519-3(3) Condition: Trimmed close to platemark, without loss to image. Minor time toning and dirt staining to sheet. Manuscript '6' platemark in bottom right corner of sheet. Laid to album page. |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £750.00 |
| Stock ID | 50194 |