
The Organ Player and His Wife
<p>Here a couple making music in a comfortable interior is an image of harmony. The wife assists the husband by working the bellows of the portative organ, and her open mouth suggests that he is accompanying her song. This is one of a series of six engravings by Meckenem showing couples engaging in music making, card playing, and other pastimes in domestic settings. The engraver elaborated on the household details with particular care, delineating a curtained bed, a built-in cupboard open to show a basin and covered cup, and an extendable table holding the organ. Above the wife’s head is a convex mirror, which was still a luxury item in 1500.</p>
Catalogue
- Year
- 1495
- Dimensions
- 16.5 × 10.9 cm (6 1/2 × 4 5/16 in.)
- Collection
- Art Institute of Chicago
Artist

Printmaking
Israhel van Meckenem the Younger
Full artist profile →More
More by Israhel van Meckenem, the younger
The Death of Lucretia
1500 · Engraving printed in black on buff laid paper
The Four Witches
1497 · Engraving in black on ivory laid paper
A Man and Woman Seated on a Bed
1495 · Engraving on ivory laid paper
The Knight and the Lady
1495 · Engraving printed in black on cream laid paper
The Churchgoers
1495 · Engraving on ivory laid paper
The Churchgoers
1495 · Engraving on ivory laid paper
Record
Verified by WattsOS- Year
- 1495
- Dimensions
- 16.5 × 10.9 cm (6 1/2 × 4 5/16 in.)
- Watts ID
- WW-1495-139821
Source
- Collection
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Source
- aic
- Reference
- View at source
- Status
- verified





