Coat of arms with Three Lions' Heads 1485 - 1528

Albrecht Durer made this 'Coat of Arms with Three Lions' Heads' using the printmaking technique of engraving. This was a highly skilled and laborious process, using a tool called a burin to carve lines directly into a metal plate, which was then inked and printed. The incredible detail of the print is made possible by the nature of engraving. Look closely and you can see the textures of the lion’s fur, the delicate rendering of foliage, and the heraldic elements of the crest. The crispness of the lines speaks to Durer’s mastery of the burin, an unforgiving tool. Engraving allowed for the relatively easy reproduction of images, crucial in disseminating imagery and information across Europe at the time. Durer was acutely aware of the market for prints, and he was among the first artists to successfully exploit it. This wasn't just 'art for art's sake'. It was art as commodity, art as information, art as a reflection of the changing economic and social landscape of the Renaissance. It reminds us that even the most refined artistic achievements are deeply embedded in the material conditions of their making.