Netherlandish School, circa 1540

Allegory of Virtue: panel is uncradled. there is a vertical join, reinforced by four round pieces of wood on the reverse, which runs top to bottom on right side down through head of unicorn, his forelegs, and head and right arm of Cupid. under a dirty, discolored old varnish. some thinnesses in the browns of background and foliage, and in the lettering at bottom. for the most part, however, the paint surface has been well retained and there is good detail in the figure and unicorn. under UV: small scattered retouches on the unicorn, along aforementioned join, a few in landscape and sky. some can also be seen on lettering and background around lettering. Allegory of Death: panel is uncradled. as with the other panel, there is a vertical join along right side which is not visible to naked eye from the front. darks of the foliage and cloak of Death are a bit thin, as are the letters at bottom. detail in figure of maiden well retained. under UV: retouches on cloak of Death, on the animal, in sky and some on costume and face of maiden. scattered retouches on lettering. These paintings have not been attended to in a long time and would benefit from a light cleaning and sensitive restoration. Both in plain black frames with gilt inner edge.
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The two pictures in this pair represent a sequence in the struggle between love, or "Amor", Virtue, and Death. The personifcation of Fortitude, or Chastity, rides a unicorn, which is a traditional symbol for the latter. In a dramatic encounter, chastity overtakes a winged Cupid in a symbolic event which quite clearly alludes to the power of reason over physical temptation. In the second scene, Death holding a skull, the classic vanitas symbol, similarly triumphs over the once mighty reason. Seen as a progression, the pair may be read as a didactic lesson in the way to lead a noble life. Reason should supercede primal love, and death supercedes all worldly aspirations.

Another version of the panel depicting Virtue triumphing over Cupid was recorded on the art market, Munich, 1955.