Gevecht tussen satyrs rijdend op hippocampussen en oude vrouw als personificatie van afgunst staand op rug van draak

Gevecht tussen satyrs rijdend op hippocampussen en oude vrouw als personificatie van afgunst staand op rug van draak by Andrea Mantegna is a significant print, executed on paper between 1473 and 1477. This powerful composition highlights the Italian Renaissance master’s mastery of rigorous classical draftsmanship and his early contributions to the medium of copperplate prints.

The dynamic scene depicts a violent mythological struggle fused with moral allegory. On one side, vigorous satyrs, hybrid figures symbolizing primal nature, engage in combat while mounted on powerful, serpentine hippocampi. Opposing this chaos, or perhaps presiding over it, is the dramatic figure of an old woman, representing the personification of Invidia (Envy), dramatically positioned atop a monstrous dragon. This juxtaposition of classical mythological figures with explicit medieval allegory is typical of the complex intellectual interests of the 15th-century courtly circle surrounding Mantegna in Mantua.

Mantegna employed precise cross-hatching and deep shadow to render the figures with the hard, relief-like quality of antique marble sculpture, a distinguishing feature of his style. His pioneering approach to printmaking demonstrated how the medium could reproduce complex, multi-figured compositions with remarkable detail, influencing artists like Albrecht Dürer. Gevecht tussen satyrs rijdend op hippocampussen en oude vrouw als personificatie van afgunst staand op rug van draak is a canonical example of the artist’s graphic work. This important piece is maintained within the collection of the Rijksmuseum and, due to its historical age, is commonly referenced through public domain archival resources globally.