Hand with Reflecting Sphere
Hand with Reflecting Sphere (Self-Portrait in Spherical Mirror) is a lithograph print by the Dutch artist M. C. Escher which was first printed in January, 1935. It depicts a hand holding a reflective sphere. In the reflection the hand holding the sphere is revealed to be Escher’s. Self portraits in reflective, spherical surfaces are common in Escher’s work, however this image is the most prominent and famous example. In most other self portraits of this type Escher is in the act of drawing the sphere, however, in this image he is seated in a library or study passively gazing into the sphere. On the walls there are several framed pictures, one of which appears to be of an Indonesian shadow puppet.