The Knight and His Lady, ca. 1490

About the Work

Seemingly, the elaborate banderoles indicate a carefully worded conversation. Yet, it is not at all clear what kind of relationship might be at stake here. The young man, in the clothes of a contemporary sophisticated ‘dandy’, has put his arm around the woman’s waist. Does she grasp his hand behind her back or does she brush it off? Her uncovered hair characterises her as unmarried, but she points to the key ring and pouch hanging from her belt, thus wears a housewife’s insignia. Does she want to signal that marriage must come before any more physical advances? A few years later, Albrecht Dürer engraved a similar couple (Inv. 31408).