The Beautiful Virgin of Regensburg

Executed with six separate woodblocks, the print employs red, green, blue, light orange, brown, and black inks. This polychrome approach creates layered tones and a subtle sense of depth, characteristic of the Danube School’s vivid coloration and attention to naturalistic detail within religious subjects.

Albrecht Altdorfer, a leading figure of the Danube School and a member of the Nuremberg Little Masters, produced the work in Regensburg. The piece reflects his early interest in landscape as an independent element, though here the focus remains on the devotional figures.

During the early sixteenth century, German printmakers increasingly explored multicolored woodcuts to enhance narrative impact. Altdorfer’s use of color and his integration of a serene setting align with contemporary trends that combined devotional imagery with richly rendered environments.