April 30th is known in Germany as Walpurgis Night – when witches band together to swoop on broomsticks, dance around fires, and revel with the devil to celebrate the end of winter and the start of spring. The holiday’s origins date back to pagan celebrations of fertility rites and the coming of spring. Barlach illustrated this holiday in this woodcut, which once served as an illustration in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s book Walpurgisnacht (Walpurgis Night). The image consists of a goat leaping from right to left and being ridden by a grotesque figure with one human and several animal heads, along with lobster claws. The figure represents the erudite Faust who has made a pact with the Devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures.
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