Design for Armor Decoration
ca. 1515
Medium
Etching; second state of two
Dimensions
Sheet: 3 3/8 × 5 5/16 in. (8.5 × 13.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1918
Accession Number
18.55.1
Tags
Art Historical Context
Daniel Hopfer's *Design for Armor Decoration*ca. 1515) is a captivating example of early Renaissance printmaking from Germany. As an Augsburg goldsmith and arm, Hopfer pioneered etching—a revolutionary technique he adapted from his metalworking trade. This small etching (3 3/8 × 5 5/16 in.), in its second state of two, features intricate ornamental motifs suited for embellishing knightly armor, blending Gothic flourishes with emerging Renaissance elegance. Etching allowed Hopfer to incise designs into iron plates with acid, producing fine, detailed lines unattainable by traditional engraving....
About the Artist
Daniel Hopfer · 1471–1536
Daniel Hopfer (c. 1470–1536), born in Kaufbeuren, was the son of the painter Bartholomäus Hopfer and Anna Sendlerin. He relocated early to Augsburg, becoming a citizen and master painter there in 1493, and trained as an etcher of armor in this thriving center of arms production. By 1505, he owned a house in the city center and served on the guild committee for smiths, which encompassed painters an...