Prints and Principles

Most of the recent posts give details about individual prints and earlier posts discuss some of the subtle principles guiding artists in making images meaningful and memorable. For prints that are unsold, click "Items still available for sale" below. All other prints are no longer available. My contact email is oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com and my Instagram username is @printsandprinciples. I have created a separate blog to show my own work: https://printsandprinciplesjamesbrown.blogspot.com

Saturday, 8 February 2025

Jan Sadeler I, “Saint Didymus”, c.1585, after Maarten de Vos

Jan Sadeler I (aka Johannes Sadeler; Johann Sadeler) (1550–1600)

“Saint Didymus” (TIB title) (aka “Didymus van Nitria als kluizenaar” [Didymus of Nitria as a Hermit]), c.1585 (1583–1588), after a lost drawing by Maarten de Vos (aka Maarten de Vos; Maerten de Vos) (1532–1603), plate 13 in the series, “Oraculum Anachoreticum” (aka “Hermits”), published by Jan Sadeler in Venice with privilege from Rudolf II of Habsburg.

Wikipedia advises that the saint is also known as “Didymus the Blind (alternatively spelled Dedimus or Didymous (c.313–398)” and “was a Christian theologian in the Church of Alexandria.” Interestingly, the date of the saint’s death may be arguable as the biographical details offered by Isabelle de Ramaix (2001) in TIB (vol. 70, part 2, suppl. p 192) advises that the saint was “a companion of Theodorus, the saint dies in Alexandria in 301. He is celebrated on 4 April.”

Engraving on fine laid paper, trimmed with a small margin around the platemark.

Size: (sheet) 19.3 x 21.7 cm; (plate) 18 x 21.6 cm; (image borderline) 15.7 x 20.8 cm.

Inscribed in plate within the image borderline: (lower right of centre) “Sadeler excud:”.

Lettered in plate below the image borderline: “Tanta fuit DIDYMO …/ …// 13// …/ …/ …malis.”

Lifetime impression. State i (of ii) before the erasure of the number “13” in the second state.

TIB 7001.361 SI (Isabelle de Ramaix 2001, “The Illustrated Bartsch: Johan Sadeler I”, vol. 70, Part 2 [Supplement], New York, Abaris Books, p. 192, cat. no. [7001].361 S1); Hollstein 390 (1980, vol. 21, cat. no. 390).

The Rijksmuseum offers the following description of this print: (transl.) “St. Didymus of Nitria as a hermit. He reads the Bible while walking. Around him on the ground crawl snakes and other evil animals (toads, scorpions and reptiles)” (https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200248017).

Condition: a strong and near faultless lifetime impression, trimmed with a small margin around the platemark. The sheet is in an excellent (near pristine) condition for its considerable age with no tears, holes or stains.

I am selling this superb engraving executed with great subtlety—note how the engraver has darkened the immediate background around the lit side of the saint and lightened the background on the saint’s shadow side, perhaps even more interesting, note how the engraver has added the suggestion of movement to the saint’s right hand through the use of animation marks (agitrons)—for the total cost of AU $340 (currently US $213.30/ EUR 206.52/ GBP 171.95 at the time of this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries. Note that payment is in Australian dollars (AU $340) as this is my currency.

If you are interested in purchasing this curiously wonderful engraving of a hermit saint thoroughly engaged in reading the scriptures and oblivious to an accompanying contingent of demon critters, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold