Allegorie op de kroning van Leopold II tot keizer van het Heilige Roomse Rijk, 1790 1790

This allegorical print, commemorating Leopold II's coronation in 1790, was made by Antoni Zürcher, who lived from 1755 to 1837. It's an etching, meaning that the image was incised into a metal plate, inked, and then pressed onto paper. Consider the labor involved. Each line, each curve, carefully bitten into the metal by acid. The artist's hand guided the etching tool, but the industrial process of acid-etching gave the image its final form. The precise details of this print, its allegorical figures and ornate lettering, are only possible because of this convergence of handcraft and industrial means. Prints like these were propaganda, meant to circulate widely and shape public opinion. This particular print would have served to legitimate Leopold's rule. By understanding the materials and methods used to produce this artwork, we can better appreciate its social function and the complex relationship between art, politics, and the emerging age of mass production.