Duel with Swords and Daggers
Medium
woodcut on laid paper
Dimensions
sheet (trimmed to block): 6 × 8.3 cm (2 3/8 × 3 1/4 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
R.L. Baumfeld Collection
Accession Number
1969.15.222
Art Historical Context
**Duel with Swords and Daggers** (1621) is a dynamic woodcut on laid paper by Edouard Eckman, faithfully reproducing a design by the renowned French printmaker Jacques Callot. Measuring just 6 × 8.3 cm, this intimate print captures the raw intensity of a close-quarters duel, with swords and daggers clashing in a whirlwind of motion. Callot, a master of the early Baroque era, was celebrated for his intricate depictions of human drama, from festivals to battles, and this work exemplifies his ability to pack vivid storytelling into miniature formats. Created during a time when dueling was a ritu...
About the Artist
Edouard Eckman after Jacques Callot
Edouard Eckman, a Flemish printmaker born around 1600, remains a somewhat enigmatic figure in art history, with his early life not well documented. Little is known about his training or formal education, though his oeuvre suggests familiarity with the vibrant printmaking traditions of the early Baroque period in Northern Europe. Active primarily in the second decade of the seventeenth century, Eck...