Fabel van de oude hond

This engraving illustrates a moral fable where a once-capable hound is punished by its master after losing its strength to age. The scene captures the stag's successful escape in the background, contrasting the fluid motion of the prey with the heavy, grounded struggle of the dog and the aggressive posture of the hunter. The detailed landscape and expressive figures are characteristic of the high-quality printmaking produced at the imperial court in Prague.

Created by Aegidius Sadeler during his tenure as court engraver to Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, this work is part of the 'Theatrum morum' series. It reflects the Rudolfine interest in combining naturalistic animal studies with moral philosophy and the emblem tradition, using animal behavior as a mirror for human ethics and the inevitability of time.