Engraving “Rhinoceros” by Albrecht Dürer – Europe’s acquaintance with an outlandish beast

Rhinoceros is a famous engraving made by Albrecht Dürer in 1515. A large exotic animal is shown chained in armor. Its weighty short paws, as if covered with scales, stand firmly on the ground. Folds of thick, woolless hide rise up around the massive neck, forming a kind of collar, and, like a wave crest, lift the metal plates of armor on the back. The powerful nasal horn creates a menacing impression. Being slightly curved, it is directed towards the signature with the artist’s monogram in the upper right corner. Enhances the impression of the second small horn on the back. Twisted in a spiral, it directly points to the letter R in the name.

The modern viewer easily finds inconsistencies with the real representative of the eastern fauna in the image, but goes deep into the study of many small details and admires the skill of the author, who has never seen a rhinoceros live and recreated his image only from a verbal description.

Name of the engraving: “Rhinoceros” (English Rhinoceros).
Author: Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528).
Year of creation: 1515
Size: 21.4 x 29.8 cm.
Style: Renaissance.
Genre: Animalism.
Technique: Engraving. Woodcut.
Material: Wood. Paper.
Location: British Museum, London.

Albrecht Dürer – the greatest master of German Renaissance art

The reason for the creation of the engraving “Rhinoceros” by Albrecht Dürer was an incredible event for those times that stirred up European society. In the port of Lisbon, as a gift to the King of Portugal, Manuel I, from India, a previously unseen outlandish beast arrived. But the show was short lived. Having amused the metropolitan audience with exotic impressions, the king decided to surprise the Pope as well. The representative of the Asian fauna was again placed in the hold to take a place in the menagerie at the Vatican. And then it sank along with the ship during a storm, depriving Europeans of the opportunity to contemplate this miracle of the animal world.

Not present at the Lisbon rhinoceros display, Dürer decided to create an engraving based on the descriptions of eyewitnesses and a sketch made by an unknown author. First, he made a drawing with pen and ink, carefully writing out the elements of a war beast that could compete with an elephant. Then, with the help of woodcuts, he mirrored the image onto a tree. At the top of the work, the master brought a text with a written description that fell into his hands and a statement about the authenticity of the performance.

The Rhino engraving by Albrecht Dürer, thanks to repeated copying, became widely known in European countries. For almost three centuries, until the end of the 18th century, the image of an unprecedented exotic animal was considered reliable. It was published in textbooks, atlases and magazines.