Fabel van de vogelvanger en de slang

A man in rustic dress sits on a bank, pulling the ropes of a large clap-net used for catching birds. While his attention is entirely focused on the trap and the birds in the distance, a large snake coils beneath him and strikes at his foot. The scene is set in a detailed landscape featuring various birds, a birdcage, and a distant village.

Created during Sadeler's tenure as court engraver to Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, this print illustrates an Aesopic fable that served as a moral emblem on the blindness of human desire. It reflects the Rudolfine court's preoccupation with 'Theatrum Mundi'—the world as a theater where hidden dangers and the laws of nature reflect moral truths.