Abstract

The need for relative age equality between husband and wife was addressed in the rapidly growing literature on the conditions of a happy marriage. It was thought that ignoring prescriptive literature would lead to marital strife and even abuse (at the hands of disgruntled husbands or even wives). The image below, a satire on age disparity, suggests that money was the motive for this unequal marriage.

Old Man with a Young Woman (1st Half of the 16th Century)

Hans Sebald Beham

Source

Source: Hans Sebald Beham. Woodcut (1st half of the 16th century). Reproduction: Directmedia Publishing GmbH, Berlin.

Recommended Citation

Old Man with a Young Woman (1st Half of the 16th Century), published in: German History in Documents and Images, <https://germanhistorydocs.org/en/from-the-reformations-to-the-thirty-years-war-1500-1648/ghdi:image-3262> [April 21, 2025].

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