Sculptura in Aes, The Workshop of an Engraver
Medium
engraving on antique laid paper
Dimensions
sheet: 28.7 × 35.6 cm · plate: 20.3 × 27.3 cm
Classification
Department
Prints
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
The A. W. Ellenberger, Sr., Endowment Fund
Accession Number
2019.33
Tags
About this artwork
This engraving, made in 1591, is an important document of the printmaking process in the 1500s. The artist Johannes Stradanus portrayed the stages of making an engraving from right to left. First, the engraver carved the plate; then, it was inked and wiped. One man is shown pulling a plate from an acid bath (illustrating the etching process). Finally, the inked plate was printed on a large roller press. The finished prints were hung to dry. The engraving was one of a series of prints Stradanus m...