Orpheus Charming the Animals (1490/1510): Artwork and History

Orpheus Charming the Animals (1490/1510) is in the Art Institute of Chicago collection. The museum lists its creator attribution as Peregrino da Cesena Italian, active c. 1490-1520.

The work and its context

The Art Institute of Chicago describes the work:

As early as the sixth century, Italian silversmiths used an enamel-like, black compound called niello to fill incisions in metal and make their ornamentation visible. Dark backgrounds and pronounced contours are common characteristics of niello plate designs. As paper became more readily available in the 15th century, silversmiths made impressions from the niello plates on sheets to check their progress or record their designs. Growing interest in these small pictures soon led artists to engrave plates for the sole purpose of making prints. Mythological subjects were the most popular niello plates. This print depicts Orpheus, son of the Greek god Apollo, playing music so skillfully that he allures the beasts around him. After the death of his wife, Eurydice, he traveled to the underworld to bring her back. Although he was unsuccessful in his mission, Orpheus became one of a select few who had journeyed to hell and back. For this feat, Dante included Orpheus in the Inferno, among the other ancient poets who reside in limbo.

Object facts

• Title: Orpheus Charming the Animals
• Date: 1490/1510
• Artist attribution: Peregrino da Cesena Italian, active c. 1490-1520
• Place of origin: Italy
• Medium: Engraving in black, from a niello plate, on ivory laid paper
• Dimensions: Plate: 5.3 × 3.1 cm (2 1/8 × 1 1/4 in.); Sheet: 5.5 × 3.4 cm (2 3/16 × 1 3/8 in.)
• Type: Print
• Department: Prints and Drawings
• Reference number: 1956.1037

Collection credit

Bequest of Mrs. Potter Palmer, Jr.

View the original

Explore the artwork in the Art Institute's collection, including its image and the museum's current catalogue details.

The description above is credited to the Art Institute of Chicago and reused under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0; HTML formatting has been converted to plain text. Other catalogue metadata and the public-domain image are provided under CC0 1.0.