Man with Sword
c. 1622
Medium
etching on laid paper
Dimensions
plate: 5.6 × 8.5 cm (2 3/16 × 3 3/8 in.) sheet: 9 × 12.2 cm (3 9/16 × 4 13/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1949.5.164
Art Historical Context
Jacques Callot's *Man with Sword*, created 1622, is a exquisite example of the French artist's mastery in etching, a technique he helped refine during the early Baroque period. This small-scale print (plate: 5.6 × 8.5 cm) on laid paper captures a solitary figure poised with weapon in hand, rendered with Callot's signature intricate line work. Working primarily in Florence and his native Lorraine, Callot thousands of such *petits fers*—tiny etchings made with fine iron plates—allowing for remarkable detail and portability, ideal for collectors and dissemination across Europe. Etching's signifi...
About the Artist
Jacques Callot · 1592–1635
Jacques Callot (1592–1635) was a French printmaker and draftsman from the Duchy of Lorraine, widely regarded as one of the first great artists to practice the graphic arts exclusively. His more than 1,400 etchings chronicled the breadth of 17th-century life, from Medici court festivities to the brutal realities of warfare. Callot revolutionized etching through technical innovations including the é...