The Wise and Foolish Virgins, plate five

Description

Abraham Bosse’s Wise and Foolish Virgins is a sincere evocation of the joys of domesticity. These dutiful and industrious women embody the wisdom of moderation by staying indoors while their wilder, foolish counterparts run amok outside. In the New Testament parable that Bosse updates, it is only the wise virgins who are invited to a wedding feast (and by implication, into heaven), while the foolish ones are left outside in the graceless cold.

The Wise and Foolish Virgins, plate five

Abraham Bosse

1635

Accession Number

23553

Medium

Engraving and etching on ivory laid paper

Dimensions

Image: 21.8 × 32 cm (8 5/8 × 12 5/8 in.); Sheet: 42.2 × 32 cm (16 5/8 × 12 5/8 in.)

Classification

etching

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Print Sales Miscellaneous Fund and Stickney Collection