Agostino Carracci’s engravings, “St Matthew”, “St Andrew” and “St John”, 1583

Agostino Carracci (1557–1602)

“Saint Matthew”, “Saint Andrew” and “Saint John” (aka “Matteüs, Andreas en Johannes”), 1583, from the series of 15 engravings, “Christ, the Virgin, John the Baptist, and the Twelve Apostles” (TIB 48–62), published by Orazio Bertelli (aka Oratio Bertelli) (fl. 1570–1592) presumably in Venice.

The Curator of the British Museum explains the format of the prints in this series: “The fifteen prints in this series were made on five plates, each with three figures, but as each has its own border around the image it seems probable that they were intended to be separated” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_U-2-31). This rare set of engravings is from an uncut impression of the whole plate.

Engraving on laid paper trimmed unevenly around the platemark with a narrow margin and backed with a support sheet

Size: (unevenly cut sheet) 11.3 x 19.9 cm; (borderline of left image) 10.8 x 6.3 cm.

Inscribed on plate on along the lower edge of the right image (“Saint John”): (left) “Oratio Bertelli. Form.”; (right of centre) “1583”.

State i (of i).

TIB 57 (68); 52 (68); 54 (68) (Diane deGrazia Bohlin [ed.] 1980, “The Illustrated Bartsch: Italian Masters of the Sixteenth Century”, vol. 39, New York, Abaris Books, pp. 100–03); Bohlin 115; 116; 117 (Diane deGrazia Bohlin 1979, “Prints and related drawings by the Carracci family, a catalogue raisonné”, Washington, National Gallery of Art, pp. 216–17).

The British Museum offers the following description of this plate:

“St Matthew, St Andrew, St John; three individual prints of apostles printed together on one plate; St Matthew standing reading a book and holding a purse, St Andrew carrying a cross, St John drinking from a chalice from which a serpent emerges. 1583
(https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_U-2-82).

See also the description offered by the Rijksmuseum: http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.collect.90819.

Condition: well-printed impressions showing no (or minimal) wear to the printing plate, trimmed unevenly around the platemark and laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper. The sheet has no significant stains, holes, folds or foxing, but there are restorations (e.g. the upper right edge and the left edge have closed fractures/tears and the lower left corner is abraded).

I am selling this exceptionally rare set of engravings taken from a single printing plate—mindful that the print was arguably designed to be trimmed to separate the image of each saint—for AU$400 (currently US$293.27/EUR246.88/GBP221.39 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.

If you are interested in purchasing this relatively small set of very beautiful engravings by one of the major old master printmakers of the 1500s, 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