St. Bernard Taking a Brother to an Assembly 1600 - 1688

Claude Mellan made this engraving, "St. Bernard Taking a Brother to an Assembly," using a copper plate and a burin. Engraving is all about controlled cuts. With each precise stroke, Mellan would have removed slivers of metal, leaving behind grooves that would hold ink, then transferred to paper. Notice how the artist has used a single line that swells and thins, changing the tone by varying the line's thickness. This shows Mellan's mastery and the amount of labor involved in the production process. Engravings like this had a vital role in disseminating knowledge and imagery. Before photography, printed images were crucial for sharing visual information across distances. This print would have circulated widely, allowing people to connect with the narrative and artistry it presents. Considering the material and process, we see this work not just as a picture, but as an object deeply embedded in the social and technological context of its time.