Title Page, from Omnia Conando Docilis Solertia Vincit
ca. 1600
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet: 5 7/16 × 3 3/4 in. (13.8 × 9.6 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1956
Accession Number
56.500.82
Tags
Art Historical Context
This intricate engraving, titled *Title Page, from Om Conando Docilis Sol Vincit* by Paul Birckenh (ca. 1600), serves as the ornate frontispiece for a pattern book celebrating the motto "Docile skill conquers all by attempting." Crafted in the late Renaissance era, it exemplifies the Northern European tradition of ornamental prints, designed for artists, architects, and craftsmen to replicate decorative motifs. Measuring just 5 7/16 × 3 3/4 inches, its compact scale belies the fine detail achieved through engraving—a meticulous intaglio technique where Birckenhultz incised lines into a metal p...