Portret van Aristoteles 1549 - 1584

This is an engraving of Aristotle, made by an anonymous artist. It’s made using the intaglio process. The artist would have used a tool called a burin to cut lines into a metal plate, likely copper. Ink is then forced into these lines, and the plate is pressed onto paper. The pressure creates the image. You can see the fineness of the lines, which give the portrait its detail. The cross-hatching builds up the shadows and gives a sense of volume to Aristotle’s face and beard. Engraving like this was a key technology for disseminating images and texts. This allowed ideas to spread more widely. Think about the labour involved. Each line precisely cut by hand, resulting in a print that could be reproduced multiple times. Paying attention to these materials and processes helps us understand the image not just as a portrait, but as a product of skilled handwork and technological innovation.