Heilige Hieronymus in de wildernis, schrijvend c. 1682 - 1725

This print of Saint Jerome in the wilderness was made by an anonymous artist using engraving, a painstaking process, which involves incising an image onto a metal plate, which is then inked and printed. The act of engraving demands meticulous labor and the creation of a matrix: a perfect analogy for Jerome's life of disciplined scholarship, and translation of the Bible. Notice how the linear quality of the engraving beautifully captures textures, from the craggy rocks, to Jerome's flowing beard, or the lion's furry mane. Engraving emerged as a crucial technology for disseminating images, making art and knowledge accessible to a wider audience. This print is, therefore, part of a larger story about the democratization of information. The intense work that went into its making, mirrors the labor of its subject: a commitment to knowledge, slowly and carefully produced. By considering its material properties, we can see the true value of the artwork: not only in its aesthetic qualities, but also in its reflection of human skill, labor, and social context.