Artwork
Saint John before God and the Elders
Saint John before God and the Elders is an ink print by the Northern Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer. It dates from 1497 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The print shows John the Evangelist standing before a heavenly court of twenty-four elders surrounding God, a scene drawn from Revelation chapters 4 and 5.
The print shows John the Evangelist standing before a heavenly court of twenty-four elders surrounding God, a scene drawn from Revelation chapters 4 and 5. Dürer emphasizes the elders' crowns and thrones to convey their divine authority, while John's gesture of pointing toward the central figure underscores his prophetic role. The composition blends intricate line work with symbolic attributes, such as the book held by John, to highlight his function as the recorder of divine revelation.
Technique & Style
The work is a woodcut print created on laid paper in Nuremberg around 1496, depicting the vision from Revelation 4 and 5 with John the Evangelist surrounded by the Four and Twenty Elders before a divine figure. Dürer’s handling of line and composition emphasizes the celestial setting through stark contrasts and intricate detail, reflecting the characteristic precision of German Renaissance printmaking. The image measures 39.2 cm in height and 28.1 cm in width, and is part of the Apocalypse series, a cornerstone of early Northern Renaissance graphic art.
History & Provenance
Saint John before God and the Elders is a woodcut by Albrecht Dürer produced in Nuremberg as part of his Apocalypse series, which illustrates scenes from the Book of Revelation. The print was created in 1496, with the broader series dated to 1498, and is executed on laid paper.
The work belongs to a set of impressions now dispersed across major collections. Holdings include the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. (including prints in the Rosenwald Collection), the Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe, the Chester Beatty Library, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the Städel Museum, the Yale University Art Gallery, the Clark Art Institute, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Harvard Art Museums, the Davison Art Center, the Kupferstichkabinett Berlin, and the Kupferstich-Kabinett Dresden. Specific impressions are recorded at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, and the Chester Beatty Library.
The woodcut Saint John before God and the Elders (1496) is held in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and is part of the Chester Beatty Library collection. It was created in Nuremberg and first exhibited as part of Dürer’s Apocalypse series.
Legacy
Created by Albrecht Dürer around 1496 as part of his Apocalypse series, Saint John before God and the Elders achieved enduring prominence as a landmark of the German Renaissance. The work's reputation is evidenced by its widespread preservation in major international institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Kupferstichkabinett in Berlin. Its legacy is further defined by its inclusion in prestigious private collections such as the Rosenwald Collection and the Chester Beatty Library, ensuring its continued accessibility to scholars and the public.
As a seminal woodcut depicting the visionary scene from Revelation 4 and 5, the print remains a key reference point for understanding Dürer's mastery of the medium and his influence on religious art.
Overview
Albrecht Dürer’s woodcut titled Saint John before God and the Elders belongs to his celebrated Apocalypse series, a set of prints that visually narrate the prophetic visions of the Book of Revelation. Executed in the early 16th century, the image presents a solemn gathering of the apostle John in the presence of divine authority, rendered in the stark contrasts characteristic of the medium.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Albrecht Dürer spent his life in Nuremberg, a busy German city where artists traded prints like currency.
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