Saint Catherine (ca. 1600–59)
Original title: Saint Catherine
kurzbeschreibung
In Schelte Adams à Bolswert's engraving "Saint Catherine," made between 1600 and 1659, the saint appears in a familiar iconographic tradition. A sword and a wheel point to her martyrdom, and two angels with palm fronds flank her.
Description
Catherine holds a sword in her right hand, while her left rests on a wheel—the instrument of her martyrdom. She wears a long, embroidered gown and stands at the center of the image. Two angels with palm fronds accompany her on either side. Light falls from above, bathing her figure in heavenly radiance; the overall arrangement is strictly symmetrical.
Context
Schelte Adams à Bolswert, a seventeenth-century Flemish engraver, was best known for his reproductive prints after Peter Paul Rubens. Here Saint Catherine follows the iconography common in the Catholic Church for the Fourteen Holy Helpers. The print belongs to the context of Counter-Reformation image production, which used saints' legends to strengthen the faith.
Impact
The symmetrical layout and the light falling from above create a solemn, devotional mood. The engraving's precise linework renders garments and figures in rich detail, inviting the viewer to look closely. The angels and attributes underscore the saint's triumphant character.
Technique
For this engraving, lines were cut into a copper plate and then printed. The fine strokes and nuanced shading are typical of the process and allow for accurate reproduction of textures and lighting. The print is in portrait format, approximately 38 × 25 cm.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)