Gentleman and Two Servants, or Solon and Two Peasants 

Sebald Beham created this engraving, “Gentleman and Two Servants,” in sixteenth-century Germany. It depicts a well-dressed man standing with two peasants in a rural setting. The image is fascinating in the way it comments on the social structures of its time. Beham was working during the Reformation when existing social hierarchies were being questioned. Here, the artist uses visual codes to create meaning, such as contrasting the gentleman’s fine clothing with the peasants’ simple garments. The presence of the village in the background also grounds the image in a specific cultural and geographical context. To fully understand this work, a historian would research the economic structures of 16th century Germany, specifically the relationship between landowners and peasants. Only then can we fully appreciate art as contingent on its social and institutional context.