Christ before Pilate

The soft, feathery quality of line in Martin Schongauer’s engraving shows the tonal language of a drawing translated to the engraved plate. Schongauer was the earliest German painter to forsee that engravings could impact his reputation. His prints established a legacy throughout Europe far beyond what his paintings alone could have done. Schongauer set the benchmark for the young Albrecht Dürer, a goldsmith’s son like himself who became an international artist due in part to the marketing of prints.