Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester
1551 to 1600
Medium
engraving
Dimensions
sheet: 12.7 × 7.5 cm (5 × 2 15/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1951.11.452
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the National Gallery of, where this intimate engraving, *Robert Dudley, Earl Leicester*, captures a pivotal figure from Elizabethan England. Created by William Marshall between 1551 and 1600, the print measures just 12.7 × 7.5 cm, ideal for personal collections or illustrated books. Robert Dudley, a dashing courtier and favorite of Elizabeth I, rose to prominence as Earl of Leicester, embodying the intrigue and ambition of Tudor politics—he was even considered a suitor to the Virgin Queen. Engraving, the medium here, was a revolutionary printmaking technique in the Renaissance, inv...
About the Artist
William Marshall
**William Edgar Marshall (1837–1906)** was a preeminent American engraver and portrait painter, renowned for his meticulous line engravings on steel that captured the dignity and character of his subjects. Born in New York City to Scottish parents, Marshall began his career young, apprenticing at age seventeen in a watch-case factory before honing his skills engraving portraits at the U.S. Treasur...