S. Pèlerin, éveque et martyr (St. Pelerin, Bishop and Martyr), May 16th, from "Les Images De Tous Les Saincts et Saintes de L'Année" (Images of All of the Saints and Religious Events of the Year)
Medium
Etching; second state of two (Lieure)
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 1/2 x 1 15/16 in. (6.4 x 4.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1917
Accession Number
17.50.17-371(166)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Jacques Callot, one of the most celebrated etchers of the 17th century, created *S. Pèlerin, éveque et martyr (St Pelerin, Bishop and Martyr)* in 1636 as part of his series *Les Images De Tous Saincts et Saintes L'Année*. This tiny etching (just 2½ x 1⅞ inches) captures the saint on his feast day, May 16, in a devotional format designed for calendars or prayer books. Published with Israël Henriet, it the Baroque era's fervor for hagiography, where vivid images of saints inspired faith amid the religious upheavals of the Thirty Years' War. Callot's mastery of etching shines here in the second ...
About the Artist
Jacques Callot|Israël Henriet · 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...