1529
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Three Cupids and a Bear is a 1529 by Heinrich Aldegrever, a Northern Renaissance work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This print shows two chubby, naked boys holding up a shield. Behind them is a bear standing on its hind legs, looking down. The shield has a crown, keys, and a big letter "G" in the middle. Swirly leaves and flowers frame the whole scene. The boys look like cherubs—those wingless, baby-faced helpers from old stories. The bear’s odd pose and the shield’s symbols might hint at something deeper, but it’s all drawn in sharp, dark lines. Next, look up Renaissance to see how artists played with symbols like this.
Heinrich Aldegrever or Aldegraf was a German painter and engraver. He was one of the "Little Masters", the group of German artists making small old master prints in the generation after Albrecht Dürer.
See the richer artist page
