Raphael Sadeler I’s engraving, “The Holy Family”, 1598

Raphael Sadeler I (1560/61–1628/32)

“The Holy Family” (TIB title: “Holy Family beneath an open curtain with St Elizabeth, the young St John the Baptist, St Catherine of Alexandria, and an old man”), 1598, after a lost drawing by Hans von Aachen (1552–1615).

Engraving (with etching) on fine laid paper trimmed along the platemark with thread margins.

Size: (sheet) 27.7 x 22 cm

Inscribed on step, below, to the right: “Hans von Achen ineunt. Raphael Sadeler fecit et excud”; above fecit: “1589”.

State i (of i)

TIB (2006) 7101.069 (Vol. 71, Part 1, Supplement, p. 93); Nagler 1835–52, nos. 36 and 47; Le Blanc, no. 54; Meyer, vol. 1, p. 42, no. 60; Wurzbach, no. 25 and 35; Pelzer, p. 164; Hollstein (1980) vol. 21, no. 77; Edquist, p. 281, no. 6 and p. 389, no. 33a; New Hollstein 30 (von Aachen)

Condition: well-inked, crisp impression (undoubtedly a lifetime impression based on the quality) trimmed along the platemark and laid onto a conservator’s support sheet. This is a museum quality impression but there are two minor issues. There are repairs to the edge of the corner at the top left (virtually invisible) and there is a small loss to the image that is lightly toned so that it is not visually distracting at the lower edge of the curtain. Beyond these issues the print is in excellent condition.

I am selling this stunningly rich impression of one of Raphael Sadeler’s major engravings for AU$343 (currently US$270.40/EUR230.22/GBP207.93 at the time of this listing) including postage and handling to anywhere in the world.

If you are interested in purchasing this masterpiece of engraving, 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

Although the prints of Raphael Sadeler I are described as engravings, this is not completely true. ALL of this artist’s engravings, along with those made by his brother, Johan Sadeler I, were begun initially as etchings that were later refined with strokes of the burin to become engravings. Indeed, in the case of Raphael’s use of engraving, Isabelle de Ramaix (2006) in her catalogue raisonné in the “The Illustrated Bartsch” for Raphael Sadeler, Volume 71, Part 1 (Supplement) makes the interesting point that Raphael “engraved less with the burin than his elder brother, so that the etched line remain clearly visible” (p. 1).