Playing Card, with Wild Woman and Unicorn

• Source: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/364585
• Museum: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Object Number: 22.83.16

Artwork Details

• Title: Playing Card, with Wild Woman and Unicorn
• Artist: Master ES (German, active ca. 1450–67)
• Date: 15th century
• Medium: Engraving; second state
• Dimensions: Sheet: 4 1/8 × 2 7/8 in. (10.5 × 7.3 cm); Plate: 3 7/8 × 2 11/16 in. (9.8 × 6.8 cm)
• Classification: Prints
• Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1922
• Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
• Rights: Public Domain

Related Publications

• The Wild Man: Medieval Myth and Symbolism (The Met, free to download)
• The Secular Spirit: Life and Art at the End of the Middle Ages (The Met, free to download)

Context

This engraving by Master ES depicts a Wild Woman (Wildweibchen) alongside a unicorn — a combination of contradictory symbols of lust (Wild Woman) and chastity (Unicorn). This motif was popular in 15th-century Central European art and is discussed in the “Hairy Mary – One More Time” article as a potential parallel to depictions of hirsute Mary Magdalene.

Related Links

• Hairy Mary – One More Time — article discussing this artwork

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