Ornament with Fantastic Satyr and Dolphins 

This Ornament with Fantastic Satyr and Dolphins was engraved by Master I.B. in Germany, sometime between 1525 and 1530. Master I.B.'s ornamental friezes are of particular interest, because prints like this one were made to be used. The use of repeatable ornament was part of a capitalist print market, which emerged during the early sixteenth century. This ornamental design is replete with classical references. The satyr and dolphin motifs link the work to an idealised, mythological past. But it also speaks to the social world that produced it. Master I.B. was working at a time when the printing press was relatively new. This technology allowed for the mass production of images that could be circulated widely. The circulation of images through the capitalist marketplace was an important feature of the period. Looking at images like this, art historians can research how new technologies, industries, and markets changed art forever.