Sønne-stortabet 1897

F. Hendriksen made this print, "Sønne-stortabet," which translates to "The Great Loss of Sons," in Denmark at an unknown date. It is currently located at the Statens Museum for Kunst. Hendriksen's print presents a series of vignettes that relate to a larger narrative concerning family and loss, with specific titles for each of the small scenes. We can see visual codes which reference Norse mythology and Icelandic sagas, the subject of many 19th-century Scandinavian artworks. It also brings into play the cultural reverence for folklore, the subject of serious academic study in the 19th century, and, as a printed illustration, the work would have been accessible to a wide audience. To fully understand the social conditions that shaped its production, further research into the artistic and literary circles that celebrated Norse mythology would be invaluable. The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.