Death and Life Contrasted Print, Memento Mori Skeleton Wall Art, Georgian Engraving after Robert Dighton

Half of him is dressed for a ball. The other half has already been buried.

A fine art print of Death and Life Contrasted after Robert Dighton, memento mori wall art for a dark academia study.

ABOUT THE PAINTING
Death and Life Contrasted, or An Essay on Man is a hand-coloured Georgian engraving after a design by Robert Dighton, printed in London by Bowles and Carver between about 1784 and 1793. One figure is split down the middle. On the right stands a fashionable gentleman in a red coat with a star on his breast. On the left stands his own skeleton, leaning on a gravedigger's spade.

Look closely at the grass by his feet. A ticket for a masquerade at the Pantheon, playing cards, dice and a scroll marked Pedigree lie scattered there. The stone tablet behind him begins with the words "The Wages of Sin is Death." It is a memento mori, a reminder that death comes for everyone, delivered with a Georgian sense of humour. A companion print, An Essay on Woman, makes the same point with a lady of fashion.

THE LOOK
Scarlet coat, sage green grass and the cream of old paper. Witty, macabre and beautifully strange. Gothic wall art for a library, a study or a hallway, and a talking point in any dark academia decor.

GIFTING
A clever gift for a birthday, a graduation or a new home library. A two-hundred-year-old joke that still lands.

MORE
More memento mori in our Gothic Memento Mori Art collection: Allegory of Death by Tomás Mondragón and Memento Mori, To This Favour by William Michael Harnett. For a skeleton with a sense of humour, see Head of a Skeleton with a Burning Cigarette by Vincent van Gogh.

THE PRINT
A fine art reproduction of the original painting on 200gsm matte paper. Rich colour, no glare.

Sizes: A5, A4, A3 and A2, plus 12x16 and 18x24 inches. Custom sizes on request. Frames: black, white or oak, or unframed.

Printed locally in the UK, Europe, the US, Canada and Australia, at the location closest to you. Free tracked shipping, no customs fees.

Please note: each print is reproduced from a museum photograph of the original painting. Larger sizes show the canvas weave, brushwork and age cracks up close, details not visible in these photos or smaller prints. Like the painting itself, it is best viewed from a short distance.

REAL ART, NOT AI
Every print in our shop starts with a real painting from a museum collection or public archive. We research each work and prepare the file for print. We never sell AI-generated art.

PRINT QUALITY
200gsm matte paper. Archival, fade-resistant inks. Sharp detail and deep colour.

SIZES
A5: 148 x 210 mm (5.8 x 8.3 in)
A4: 210 x 297 mm (8.3 x 11.7 in)
A3: 297 x 420 mm (11.7 x 16.5 in)
A2: 420 x 594 mm (16.5 x 23.4 in)
12 x 16 in (30 x 40 cm)
18 x 24 in (45 x 60 cm)
Need a size to fit an existing frame? Message us for a custom print.

FRAMING
Unframed, or framed and ready to hang. Frames in black, white and oak.

DELIVERY
Unframed prints ship rolled in a postal tube. Framed prints ship flat and protected. Every order ships tracked to the UK, US, EU, Canada, Australia and worldwide.

QUESTIONS
Message us about sizing, framing or custom orders. We reply within a few hours.