Allegory of America, from "The Four Continents"

1580–1600

Not on view

This late sixteenth-century engraving made in Antwerp became an emblematic image of the New World. Series representing the "four continents" were a popular conceit during the European age of exploration, when atlases were in high demand. New World themes from other prints—cannibalism, conquest, and a female native—repeat here. Vos’s allegorical figure wears an elaborate feather headdress with a bow and arrow and sits on a giant armadillo, with a parrot nearby. While not the first representation of a feather headdress in New World prints, this may have been one of the most influential.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Catalogue Raisonné

Title: Allegory of America, from "The Four Continents"
Series/Portfolio: The Four Continents
Artist: Adriaen Collaert (Netherlandish, Antwerp ca. 1560–1618 Antwerp)
Artist: After Maerten de Vos (Netherlandish, Antwerp 1532–1603 Antwerp)
Date: 1580–1600
Medium: Engraving; second state
Dimensions: 8 3/8 x 10 1/16 in. (21.3 x 25.6 cm) (clipped)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Gift of the Estate of James Hazen Hyde, 1959
Object Number: 59.654.10
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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