Print, Design for an Engraved Tazza with the Head of a Jester and a Satyr, representing Pride and Folly

 

See more objects with the tag chariots, ornament, profile, plants, monsters, peacocks, grotesques, insects, satyrs, biblical, Adam and Eve, fantastical creatures, bowl, allegories, dragon, tazza, ornament print, Flemish, Saint John, blackwork.

Object Timeline

1942

  • We acquired this object.

2015

2016

2026

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Print, Design for an Engraved Tazza with the Head of a Jester and a Satyr, representing Pride and Folly

This is a Print. It was print maker: Théodore de Bry. It is dated ca. 1588 and we acquired it in 1942. Its medium is engraving on white laid paper. It is a part of the Drawings, Prints, and Graphic Design department.



This print is one of a series of designs for the interior decoration of tazza, footed metal bowls, engraved by goldsmith de Bry. The central image features the head of a Fool, which, when turned upside down, cleverly transforms into the head of a satyr. The wide border contains biblical and moralizing scenes set within scrolling foliage, grotesque motifs, and monstrous creatures inspired by reptiles and insects.

It is credited Museum purchase through gift of Mrs. John Innes Kane.

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Its dimensions are

Sheet: 12.7 x 12.4 cm (5 x 4 7/8 in.) Mat: 45.7 × 35.6 cm (18 × 14 in.)

Cite this object as

Print, Design for an Engraved Tazza with the Head of a Jester and a Satyr, representing Pride and Folly; Print Maker: Theodor de Bry (French, active Netherlands and Germany, 1528 - 1598); Netherlands; engraving on white laid paper; Sheet: 12.7 x 12.4 cm (5 x 4 7/8 in.) Mat: 45.7 × 35.6 cm (18 × 14 in.); Museum purchase through gift of Mrs. John Innes Kane; 1942-36-33

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

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If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18565593/ |title=Print, Design for an Engraved Tazza with the Head of a Jester and a Satyr, representing Pride and Folly |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=7 January 2026 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>