The Rhinoceros

What it is

This is a woodcut print made by Albrecht Dürer in 1515, now held by the Städel Museum. Dürer based the image on a written description and a brief sketch of an Indian rhinoceros that had arrived in Lisbon as a diplomatic gift, since he never saw the animal himself.

Why it matters

The print shows how knowledge – and misinformation – spread across Europe during the age of exploration. Dürer's rhinoceros, with its armor-like plated skin, was wrong in many details, yet it became so popular that it was accepted as an accurate picture of the animal for centuries. It reveals both Dürer's skill as a printmaker and the limits of secondhand knowledge in his time.

Look closer

• What details on the rhinoceros look more like armor than animal skin?
• Why might Dürer have added features he could not have seen?
• What does this image's popularity tell us about how people learned about distant places?