Massacre of the Innocents

Art Historical Context

This engraving captures the dramatic biblical scene of the Massacre of the Innocents, in which King Herod orders the slaughter of young children in Bethlehem. Created around 1600 by engravers Aegid Sadeler II and Marcuseler after a composition by the Venetian master Jacopo Tintoretto, the print translates the painter’s dynamic, emotionally charged style into a detailed black-and-white medium. Tintoretto, a leading figure of late Renaissance Venice, was renowned for his energetic figures and theatrical lighting, qualities that the Sadelers carefully preserved through precise line work. As a third state of four, this impression reflects the careful evolution of the plate during printing. Engravings like this one played a vital role in the early seventeenth century by allowing important religious and artistic subjects to reach wider audiences across Europe. Produced in the workshop of the Sadeler family, skilled Flemish printmakers active in Prague and elsewhere, the work helped spread Venetian artistic ideas northward while serving devotional and educational purposes during the Counter-Reformation. Measuring roughly 39 by 49 centimeters, the sheet’s generous scale allows viewers to appreciate the intricate network of lines that convey movement and pathos. Now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection, it stands as a fine example of how prints bridged painting and popular devotion, preserving powerful narratives for generations of museum visitors.

About the Artist

Aegidius Sadeler II|Jacopo Tintoretto (Jacopo Robusti)|Marcus Sadeler · 1568–1629

Netherlandish, Antwerp 1568–1629 Prague