Snapshots of the Past

[Fable of crane and peacock] – Antique Print

[Fable of crane and peacock] — historic print
[Fable of crane and peacock]. Historic print from the Historic Print Archive collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

[Fable of crane and peacock] comes to life in this historic print, reproduced from the original with every detail intact. The original is held by the Library of Congress, so what you hang is a true record of its time.

The framed print arrives ready to hang; the unframed option suits custom framing. A fine choice for anyone who loves history, and a gift that gets noticed. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Snapshots of the Past has been bringing history to the wall since 2001, for tens of thousands of customers worldwide.

[Fable of crane and peacock]

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The woodcut shows a crane and a peacock, the pair at the center of a fable traditionally credited to Aesop, the Greek teller whose animal stories were retold for centuries. It dates to about 1479, a period when printing had only recently spread through German-speaking towns, and illustrated fable books like this carried moral lessons to readers who could not afford costly manuscripts. The tale turns on vanity and true worth, a theme that made it popular in such books, and the contrast between the peacock's showy display and the crane's plainer bearing is worth noting when you look closely at the carving.

Medium1 print : woodcut.
Notesca. 1479.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan1,536 × 1,181 px · prints to 5 × 4 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-133930

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