page_title: Battle of the Nudes (engraving)
section_title: Date
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of the Nudes (engraving) / Date
caption_attribution_description: English: Battle of the sea gods (left and right part) Deutsch: Die Schlacht der Meeresgötter (linker und rechter Teil)
context_page_description: The Battle of the Nudes or Battle of the Naked Men, probably dating from 1465–1475, is an engraving by the Florentine goldsmith and sculptor Antonio del Pollaiuolo which is one of the most significant old master prints of the Italian Renaissance. The engraving is large at 42.4 x 60.9 cm, and depicts five men wearing headbands and five men without, fighting in pairs with weapons in front of a dense background of vegetation.
  All the figures are posed in different strained and athletic positions, and the print is advanced for the period in this respect. The style is classicizing, although they grimace fiercely, and their musculature is strongly emphasized. The two figures nearest the front of the picture space are in essentially the same pose, seen from in front and behind, and one purpose of the print may have been to give artists poses to copy. An effective and largely original return-stroke engraving technique was employed to model the bodies, with delicate and subtle effect.
context_section_description: Although most art historians have dated the work to the period 1465–1475, in 1984 the suggestion was made that the print draws directly from a Roman sculpture known to have been excavated in Rome in 1489, Three Satyrs strangled by a Serpent (now Graz, Austria). Pollaiuolo was in Rome from 1484, and this would mean the print was executed there. This suggestion remains the subject of debate.
caption: Andrea Mantegna, Battle of the Sea-Gods, ca 1490?
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