Old master print
An old master print is a work of art made by a printing process. Most of the old master prints were made by 1830 and no new ones came after. The main techniques used to make an old master print are woodcut, engraving and etching. Sometimes, old master prints are printed on paper, but rarely.
Many great European artists, such as Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt, and Francisco Goya, were printmakers.
Old Master Print Media
Melencolia I, 1514, engraving by Albrecht Dürer
This donor portrait of about 1455 shows a large coloured print attached to the wall with sealing wax. Petrus Christus, NGA, Washington.
Anonymous German 15th-century woodcut, about 1480, with hand-colouring, including (unusually) spots of gold. 5.2 x 3.9 cm (similar to the original size on most screens)
The first self-portrait, by the first businessman in the history of printmaking, Israhel van Meckenam, with his wife
Other websites
- The Printed Image in the West: History and Techniques
- Large list of links to museum etc. online images of old master prints
- Old master prints blog
