The Annihilation of the Beast; The Capture and Incarceration of the Beast from an Apocalypse blockbook, 2nd edition
Medium
Woodcut with hand coloring
Dimensions
Sheet: 10 7/8 × 8 1/16 in. (27.7 × 20.4 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1923
Accession Number
23.73.3
About this artwork
This hand-colored woodcut from an Apocalypse blockbook represents a crucial moment in the history of printing and religious imagery. Created by an anonymous Netherlandish artist between 1440-1450, this print depicts "The Annihilation of the Beast; The Capture and Incarceration of the Beast," dramatic scenes from the Book of Revelation describing the final defeat of evil. Blockbooks, produced by carving both text and images into wooden blocks for printing, represent a transitional technology betw...