Ein Hochzeiterin zu Zurich, Virgo nuptialis Tiguriensis

Two plates in one mount (other print: 2002.139/252); a figure of a woman, inscribed, Ein Hochzeiterin zu Zurich,/Virgo nuptialis Tiguriensis/ W Hollar fecit 1649, by W Hollar, Aula Veneris, 1649.

A bride from Zurich wearing an open gown, which shows her embroidered underskirt, and a large ruff around her neck. A pomander, a decorative container filled with aromatic substances (often made from precious materials), is suspended from a cord around her waist.

The maker of this print is Wenceslaus Hollar (1607 – 1677), a draughtsman and etcher from Prague. Mainly active in Germany, he visited the Netherlands in 1634 and joined the service of Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel in 1636. The earl brought the artist to London where he focused mainly on book-illustration and cartography. He joined Lord Henry Howard in his expedition to Tangiers, but afterwards continued his work as an illustrator. He died in London in reduced circumstances.

British Museum Online Catalogue, Wenceslaus Hollar. Print Museum Number: Q,5.235.

Colas, R., Bibliographie Générale du Costume et de la Mode. Description des suites, recueils, séries, revues et livres Français et étrangers relatifs au costume civil, militaire et religieux, aux modes, aux coiffures et aux divers accessoires de l’habillement, avec une table méthodique et un index alphabétique, Paris 1933, entry 1465; 1466; 1467.

Reynolds, A., In fine Style. The Art of Tudor and Stuart Fashion, London 2013.

Ribeiro, A., Fashion and Fiction. Dress in Art and Literature in Stuart England, London 2005.