Printed to order

Melencolia I by Albrecht Dürer

Albrecht Dürer, 1514

Sale price $91.00 ~~Regular price $130.00~~

Item no. PDDUW006-00

Pre-Black Friday Sale: 30% off ends in 74d 15h 49m 47s Ends Thu, Jan 14, 11:59 PM ET· order by Nov 30 for Christmas

The most mysterious print in the world: Albrecht Dürer’s engraving Melencolia I, on stretched canvas, framed, or on fine art paper.

Format

Stretched canvasfrom $91 Framed canvasfrom $112 Framed printfrom $112 Fine art printfrom $70

Size

Which size fits your wall

Every size keeps the painting's own proportions. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame, so the visible painting is a little smaller.

16 × 20 in 41 × 51 cm

Three-seat sofa, 84 in wide × 34 in tall (213 × 86 cm)

Size	Metric	Where it works
16 × 20 in	41 × 51 cm	Plays well with others: the middle of a gallery wall, a pair side by side, or a hallway on its own.
24 × 30 in	61 × 76 cm	Holds a wall on its own above a dresser, console or sideboard. Above a bed or a sofa, hang two side by side.
32 × 40 in	81 × 102 cm	A statement piece. Big enough to anchor a living room or dining room wall alone, or to hang above a queen bed or a fireplace.

Rule of thumb: choose art about two-thirds the width of the furniture beneath it.

16 × 20 in41 × 51 cm 24 × 30 in61 × 76 cm 32 × 40 in81 × 102 cm

Frame

Black White Natural wood Dark wood

Make it a gift

Gift note

We write it on a card and tuck it in behind the painting. The price never appears in the box.

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Subtotal ~~Regular price $130.00~~ $91.00

Printed to order in 1–3 business days
Free US shipping, tracked, 5–12 business days
30-day returns and exchanges
Damage cover included: we remake and reship

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Questions about sizes or framing? Ask us

This engraving is fine black lines and silvery greys, and a cheap copy fills the shadows and loses the detail. Our Dürer Melencolia I print was graded beside the original so every tool and line stays sharp and the greys keep their range.

Canvas, framed or paper

Stretched canvas. Printed on cotton canvas and stretched taut over a frame. The edges are mirror-wrapped, so the picture continues around the sides and none of it is lost to the fold.

Framed canvas. The same canvas, set in a black, white, natural wood or dark wood frame 0.83 in deep. The frame gives the work a finished edge and a little more presence on the wall.

Framed print. Printed on fine art matte paper and framed in solid pine, behind shatterproof plexiglass, in black, white, natural wood or dark wood. It arrives ready to hang. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame.

Fine art print. Printed on 310gsm fine art matte paper, for framing your own way. It travels rolled and protected. From 18x24 inch.

Sizes

16x20 inch, 24x30 inch, 32x40 inch. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame, so the visible painting is a little smaller.

On your wall

Its tall shape suits a study, a library or a hallway, and it is a favourite for lovers of mystery and mathematics. The silver greys look striking with white, charcoal and walnut, and a black frame suits it.

About the painting

Melencolia I by Albrecht Dürer

Nuremberg, 1514

In 1514 Albrecht Dürer made this large engraving. A winged woman sits with her head in her hand, staring past everything around her. In those two years his friends, and then his mother, had died.

Tools and puzzles

Around her lie an hourglass, scales, a plane, a hammer and a saw. Behind her are a magic square and a ladder. In the sky a rainbow, a comet, and a bat-like creature carrying the title.

Northern Renaissance

It is one of his three master prints, and it has probably been written about more than any other print. Yet it has resisted any final interpretation. Maybe it is a muse waiting for inspiration, maybe a self-portrait.

Listen to the story

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Read the story

This may be the most argued-about print in the world.

Albrecht Dürer made the engraving in 1514. In those years his friends, and then his mother, had died.

A winged woman sits with her head in her hand. She stares past everything around her.

And around her, there's a lot. An hourglass, a set of scales, a plane, a hammer, a saw.

Behind her, a square of numbers, a magic square, and a ladder leading out of the picture.

In the sky, a rainbow, a comet, and a bat-like creature carrying the title: Melencolia, one.

It's one of his three master prints. Scholars have written more about it than probably any other print. And still nobody agrees what it means.

Maybe she's a muse, waiting for inspiration. Maybe she's Dürer himself.

Look at her shadowed face, and then try to count all the tools around her.

Melencolia I. Albrecht Dürer, 1514.

How each piece is brought to life

Faithful to the original, and made to be felt on your wall.

Graded against the original

We compare every work with the original as we grade it, keeping the artist’s colours true while bringing back their depth and glow. Every mark stays the artist’s own.
Printed for you

Printed to order on cotton canvas or fine art paper, then framed if you chose a frame, in 1 to 3 business days.
On your wall

It arrives 5 to 12 business days later, tracked and free anywhere in the US. Framed pieces come ready to hang.

Questions

Is this the original painting?

No. The original hangs in a museum. What you receive is a fine art reproduction, remastered from the original and printed for you, with every mark where the artist left it.

Will the colour look flat?

This is where most reproductions disappoint, and it is where we spend the most time. Each work is graded side by side with the original: faithful to the artist’s colours, with the depth and warmth brought back, so it moves you on the wall the way it was meant to. Canvas reads a touch softer than a backlit screen, and every screen shows colour a little differently.

Will the edges be cropped?

Each size is a standard frame size, so we fit the painting by trimming a little from its edges. We never stretch or squash it, and we check every size by eye so no face, figure or signature is cut. On canvas the edges are mirror-wrapped, which keeps the whole picture on the front.

Which size is right for my wall?

Aim for about two-thirds the width of the furniture beneath it. Over a sofa or a sideboard, one of the two largest sizes will hold the wall. The size guide lists every size in inches and centimetres, with the kind of wall each one suits.

How long does it take?

Your piece is printed in 1–3 business days, then spends 5–12 business days in transit, tracked all the way. Delivery is free anywhere in the US. We are unable to deliver to PO boxes.

What if it arrives damaged?

Send us a photograph and we will remake it and send it again. There is nothing to return.

Can I return it?

Yes, within 30 days of delivery. Our returns policy has the details.