Ornament with Women Fighting

Master E. S., perhaps the most significant Northern printmaker working prior to Martin Schongauer, popularized this type of ornamental motif, which was widely used as a decorative model for later artists. This particular image depicts five naked women entangled in a mass of vines and leaves, fighting over undergarments to cover their exposed bodies. The comical subject reflects a sort of grotesque humor often found in engravings by Master E. S., especially his Fantastic Alphabet.