Andrea Andreani

Virtue, who has already dropped her scepter, sword, and scales of justice, battles Love (the cupid), Ignorance (with a mask), Opinion (the woman with donkey’s ears), and Error (with batwing ears). This allegory would have appealed to humanist scholars at the court of Medici Grand Duke Francesco I, who would have also appreciated the virtuoso display of figures in complicated poses.

Despite the complexity of the subject and of the fine lines of the block, the printing of the impression reveals some of the problems inherent in chiaroscuro technique. The lightest ochre ink was unevenly absorbed by the paper when printed. The alignment (registration) of the blocks for printing the different colors is noticeably off. Traces of the darkest ochre at the top left corner reveal the accidental printing of the gouge marks in the block for the darkest tone.