The Vanity of Women: Masks and Bustles

The engraving depicts a group of five women in 16th-century clothing. The woman on the left sits on a chair wearing a striped dress and a ruff; she holds a mask. A woman wearing a headscarf and a long dress kneels on the floor at her feet. A third woman, also wearing a headscarf and a long dress, works at a table with two other women wearing headscarves and dresses to her right. One of the women by the table holds a plate of makeup. The woman on the right wears a dress with a bustle and a low-cut neckline and ruff; she stands with her hands behind her back. The room has a wooden wall with a window on the left. The women wear various accessories, including jewelry, purses, and a tail protruding from the back of one woman's dress. The image includes illegible text.