Nemesis

Martin Schongauer’s painterly sense of light and composition influenced Albrecht Dürer. The younger Dürer even visited Schongauer but arrived after his death. Nemesis, based on a Latin poem by Italian scholar Angelo Poliziano (1454–1494), is the Greek goddess of moral judgment and justice; her goblet and bridle symbolize reward and punishment. The print showcases Dürer’s organized, graphic approach to engraving, with refined dark-to-light transitions that create an unprecedented three-dimensional effect. His varied marks—from long and winding to crossed and dotted—produce organized and finely detailed vignettes. Such large, elaborate engravings took Dürer months to complete and attracted a growing number of collectors.