Albrecht Dürer's ''Self-portrait at 26''

Origin
Albrecht Dürer was a painter, printmaker, and theorist of the German Renaissance. Born in Nuremberg, Dürer established his reputation and influence across Europe when he was still in his twenties due to his high-quality woodcut prints. He was in communication with the major Italian artists of his time, including Raphael, Giovanni Bellini and Leonardo da Vinci, and from 1512 he was patronized by Emperor Maximilian I.

His second self-portrait, painted in 1498, is widely interpreted as being a farewell to his irresponsible youth, the acclaim he received during his visit to Italy and his general apprehension as the 15th century came to an end. After he left his hometown of Nuremberg in 1490 to travel as journeyman painter he was able to live his early youth with abandon and almost without consequence. By the time this portrait was painted he was back home, and old enough to begin to accept responsibilities.

Effects
When eye contact is made with the subject they will begin to have strong feeling of reminiscence, particularly about the events of their late teens to early 20s. Notable or character-defining moments will be remembered in stark relief and they will be left with a new sense of their place in time. This effect has the potential to be both positive and negative depending on the experiences of the viewer, and may leave them either nostalgic and hopeful of times to come or wracked with traumas from a life of disaster. In either case, while viewing the painting the figure of Albrecht will gradually morph into an image of themselves as they wish to be, though only they will be able to see it as such.

Collection
This artifact was recovered from the Buen Retiro Palace in 1665 following the death of King Philip IV, who had this and several other painted artifacts in his collection.