"Les Quatre Cavaliers" (1497-1498), apocalypse Now

Four riders—Conquest with a bow, War with a sword, Famine with scales, and a gaunt Death with a pitchfork—charge across the frame together. Beneath their hooves, people of all ranks, including a king, are crushed, while a monstrous Hellmouth in the corner consumes a fallen bishop. Above the chaotic scene, an angel floats among dense clouds, witnessing the divine judgment.

Published in 1498 as part of the 'Apocalipsis cum Figuris', this work reflects the millenarian anxieties of the late 15th century. In the esoteric tradition, it aligns with Joachimite theories of historical epochs and the Neoplatonic concept of world cycles concluding in a transformative 'great year' or purgation.