Aegidius Sadeler II Prints and Multiples

Artist: Aegidius Sadeler II Petronia, First Wife of Vitellius, from set of Roman Emperors and Empresses, c. 16th-17th century Engraving Publisher: Marcus Christoph Sadeler Sight: 15 1/4 x 10 3/4 in. Framed: 19 3/4 x 15 1/4 x 1 in. This image was conceived in the 16th century by Aegidius Sadeler II and published by Marcus Christoph Sadeler. It is unclear when the present version was executed. Aegidius Sadeler or Aegidius Sadeler II[1] (1570–1629) was a Flemish engraver who was principally active at the Prague court of Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor and his successors. Sadeler was born in Antwerp in the Sadeler family of print dealers and engravers. He was the son of Emmanuel de Sayeleer and the nephew of Aegidius I, Jan I en Raphael Sadeler.[2] He was trained by his uncle Jan I and became a member of the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke in 1589. He was active in Munich the next year in 1590, in Rome in 1593, in Naples and then again in Munich in 1594–1597. From 1597 he settled in Prague where he became court engraver for Rudolf II and made engraved portraits of notables and engravings after artworks there, most notably paintings by Bartholomeus Spranger, Roelant Savery, Hans von Aachen, Giuseppe Arcimboldo, and sculptures by Giambologna and Adriaen de Vries. His early engravings were mostly faithful copies of works by Albrecht Dürer in the Imperial collection and copies of paintings by notable Italian painters such as Raphael, Tintoretto, Parmigianino, Barocci and Titian or by Northern painters who worked there, such as Paul Bril and Denys Calvaert. In Prague he also engraved portraits of the notables of Rudolf's court, and collaborated with Spranger, Joseph Heintz the Elder, Jacobus Typotius and his friend Anselmus Boece de Boodt (1550-1632), Rudolf II's gemologist and physician.[3] After Rudolf II died he enjoyed the favour and protection of the two succeeding Emperors, Matthias and Ferdinand II.[4][5] According to Michael Bryan...