Horizontaal ovaal met figuren omringd door vijf ornamenten 1615

Jonas Bentzen created this design sometime between 1592 and 1616, using the technique of engraving. The image is spare, economical – just lines incised into a metal plate, which was then inked and printed onto paper. This was a mode of production perfectly suited to the early modern period, when printed imagery was in high demand. Bentzen was not making a unique work of art, but rather supplying a template. You could think of him as an early form of industrial designer. Note the overall balance of the composition. This was meant to appeal to other makers – goldsmiths or cabinetmakers, perhaps. The image could be scaled to fit a variety of formats. The crispness of the engraved line would allow for accurate transfer into other materials. In the end, what we have here is not merely a picture, but a unit of possibility. It's a reminder that so much of visual culture is based on intermediate steps, not just the final product.