Paard uit Denemarken (Danus) c. 1578 - 1582

Hendrick Goltzius made this print of a Danish horse using engraving, a process that demands painstaking labor. A metal plate, likely copper, was incised with lines to hold ink, then pressed onto paper. Notice how the quality of line varies, creating both shading and crisp outlines. This was achieved by varying the pressure on the burin, the tool used to cut the lines. The print medium allowed for wide distribution of the image, turning the Danish horse into an object of curiosity and admiration for a broad audience. Goltzius was a virtuoso engraver, and that skill is on full display here. He elevated what might have been a simple animal portrait into a demonstration of artistic prowess. In doing so, he blurred the lines between craft and fine art, showing how technical mastery could serve aesthetic ends.