Portret van Oscar I
1844 - 1853
Medium
steel engraving
Dimensions
232; 151
About this artwork
collector's mark: Lugt 2228
Art Historical Context
**Portrait of Oscar I** by Karl Barth (1844–1853) is a fine example of 19th-century steel engraving, capturing the likeness of Sweden and Norway's King Oscar I during the early years of his reign, which began in 1844. Barth, a skilled engraver of the period, produced this intimate portrait (232 × 151 mm) likely as a print for dissemination among the nobility and collectors, reflecting the era's fascination with royal iconography amid Europe's monarchies. Steel engraving, a technique pioneered in the early 1800s, revolutionized printmaking by allowing sharper, more durable lines than tradition...
About the Artist
Karl Barth · 1787–1853
Karl Barth (also known as Carl Barth or Johann Carl Barth, 1787–1853) was a versatile German artist who worked as a copperplate engraver, draughtsman, painter, illustrator, and portrait engraver during the late eighteenth and first half of the nineteenth centuries. Born in Eisfeld in the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen and dying in Kassel, Barth exemplified the multi-talented artist-craftsman of the Roman...