|
In 1515 the first rhinoceros appeared in Portugal, a gift of Sultan Muzafar of Kamboja in India to King Emanuel I. Although he had not seen the animal with his own eyes, Dürer produced a drawing and a woodcut based on the sketch and description in a letter from a Nuremberg citizen who lived in Lisbon, Valentin Ferdinand, to a merchant who was a friend of Dürer's. The woodcut was also used to make a leaflet which Dürer sold at markets. The rhinoceros is standing in the foreground of the picture, filling its entire format. The detailed depiction of his armor and skin accords with the wording in the inscription below.
|
