4. Hendrik Goltzius
(1558-1617)
Saint John the Baptist

(click on image to print)
Goltzius, St. John

Saint John the Baptist

Chiaroscuro woodcut, ca. 1588, 229 x 132 mm., Bartsch 226, Hirschmann 362, Strauss 402 ii or iii/iii, Bialler 55 iia or iii/iii (as att. to Goltzius). Provenance: Mariette (different signature from those in Lugt). Fine, fresh impression printed in subtle tones of olive-green and tan with a strong impress into the laid paper. The impression is before the 2nd wormhole to the left of the biceps, which would make it Bialler's state iia or iii with the address cut off (state iib, confusingly, is subsequent to iii; state i is of the tone block only). This impression has been trimmed a total of 10 mm in height (mostly at the bottom) and 8 mm in width and a false borderline expertly added. There are small repairs at two corners. While one obviously would prefer an uncut and unrepaired print, the extraordinary quality of the impression makes the sheet well worth preserving, and the balance of the composition does not suffer greatly from the trimming. The image shows John as a young shepherd, a honeycomb and a grasshopper on the ledge in front of his right arm. A very beautiful print.