The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven will be Humble like a Child
probably c. 1576/1580
Medium
engraving
Dimensions
sheet: 6.8 × 6.7 cm (2 11/16 × 2 5/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1964.8.962
Art Historical Context
In the late 16th century, engraver Léonard Gier created *The Greatest in the Kingdom Heaven will be Humble a Child*, likely around 1576–1580. This intimate engraving, measuring just 6.8 × 6.7 cm, draws from Jesus's teaching in the Gospel of Matthew (18:4), emphasizing humility childlike innocence as paths to spiritual greatness. Produced during France's turbulent Wars of Religion, such prints served as accessible devotional aids, allowing ordinary believers to carry profound biblical messages in pocket-sized formats. Gaultier's mastery of engraving—a precise intaglio technique where lines are...
About the Artist
Léonard Gaultier · 1561–1641
Léonard Gaultier, a prolific French engraver born in Mainz around 1561, established himself as a prominent printmaker and publisher in Paris, where he died in 1641. Operating from addresses like "A l'Arche de Noé" on rue du Monceau-Saint-Gervais by 1585, he produced book illustrations, frontispieces, title pages, broadsides, almanacs, and standalone prints, often collaborating with publishers such...