The Flight into Egypt, from "The Life of the Virgin"

The Flight into Egypt, from "The Life of the Virgin" is a powerful woodcut created by Albrecht Dürer in 1511. This work belongs to Dürer’s monumental series illustrating the life of the Virgin Mary, a central project in his later career. Executed during the height of the German Renaissance, this print showcases the artist’s groundbreaking technical skill in manipulating the woodblock medium. By this period, Dürer had perfected the woodcut, achieving a level of fine detail and cross-hatching complexity previously reserved only for copperplate engraving.

The composition depicts the Holy Family’s perilous journey after receiving the warning to flee King Herod. Following the biblical narrative of the Flight Into Egypt, the Virgin Mary sits securely upon a sturdy donkey, cradling the Christ child, while Saint Joseph leads them through a dense, highly detailed landscape. Dürer utilizes the woodcut medium to render intricate textures, particularly in the trees, foliage, and rock formations that frame the path and heighten the sense of displacement and isolation. The mastery of light and shadow, combined with the energetic movement captured in the lines, transforms a standard biblical scene into a dramatically compelling print.

This piece, characteristic of the devotional prints popular during the Northern Renaissance, cemented Dürer’s international reputation as the era’s leading graphic artist. The clarity and definition of the lines demonstrate his unparalleled contribution to the development of printmaking as a high art form. This significant example of The Flight into Egypt resides in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it serves as a key reference for studying the German master's influential body of prints, many of which are now widely accessible as public domain works.