Join The Collection to save, track, and explore works like this.

Cleveland Museum of Art

Spotted

Alfred Rethel — Dance of Death:  Death as a Friend
Alfred Rethel

Dance of Death: Death as a Friend

1850

Part of Rethel's haunting reimagining of the medieval Dance of Death tradition, this woodcut presents the grim reaper as a deceptively benevolent companion, reflecting 19th-century anxieties about mortality and social upheaval.

Medium
woodcut

Start the Discussion

Request access to join the discussion

Spotted works by Alfred Rethel

About this work

Alfred Rethel, Dance of Death: Death as a Friend, 1850

Part of Rethel's haunting reimagining of the medieval Dance of Death tradition, this woodcut presents the grim reaper as a deceptively benevolent companion, reflecting 19th-century anxieties about mortality and social upheaval.

Medium
woodcut
Year
1850
Seen at
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Related themes

Monochrome, Dramatic, Medieval Theme, 19th Century, Memento Mori, Death, Allegorical, Symbolism, Woodcut, German

More works by Alfred Rethel

Collected by

Cleveland Museum of Art