Good impression on laid paper One of the series of 20 woodcuts, without text; the Adoration of the Magi, with the Holy Family amongst ruins on the right. c.1503 Woodcut Brilliant woodcut showing the Adoration of the Magi by Dürer. His designs would have been handed over to professional woodcarvers to make the woodblock from which the print would have been taken. Some of these blocks still exist, for example, in the British Museum in London. Countless engravings were made after this print and this is a good example from the early XX century. It shows his monogram in the bottom edge AD which he added to prevent others, for example Marcantonio Raimondi, from making unauthorised copies. Bibliographic references Meder 1932 / Dürer Katalog (199) Bartsch / Le Peintre graveur (VII.132.87) Dodgson 1903, 1911 / Catalogue of Early German and Flemish Woodcuts in the BM, 2 vols (I.289.47) Schoch 2001-04 / Albrecht Dürer, das druckgraphische Werk. 3 vols I Intaglio, II Woodcuts, III Book illustrations (II.177) The Magi Visit the Messiah from the Gospel of St. Mathew: 2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi[a] from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’[b]” 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. An early twentieth century engraving after the original woodcut. Condition is good.