Plate 7: Vase or Ewer Decorated With a Vase Flanked by Putti and Two Large Female figures whose legs morph into griffin claws, from Antique Vases (Vasa a Polydoro Caravagino) 1605

This engraving of a vase or ewer was made by Aegidius Sadeler II around the turn of the 17th century. The print is made using the intaglio process, where the image is incised into a metal plate, inked, and then pressed onto paper. This particular example showcases an elaborate object, festooned with figures and ornamentation. Sadeler was a master printmaker, but it’s important to remember that he wasn’t making luxury objects himself; rather, he was circulating designs that others might then realize. The image here is incredibly detailed, almost photorealistic, a feat of the engraver’s skill with burins and other tools. Look at the crispness of the lines and the carefully modulated shading! This print is a potent document of its time. It exemplifies how the aesthetics of design and craft were spread through Europe, with objects themselves becoming nodes in a much larger network of aspiration and exchange. This print is an important reminder that the circulation of ideas is, in itself, a kind of making.