Albrecht Dürer and the Printed Image

The printing press, developed by Johannes Gutenberg in Mainz around 1450, did not only spread texts; it spread images. The German artist Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) saw the opportunity. His woodcut series 'The Apocalypse' (1498) and engravings such as 'Melencolia I' (1514) were sold in multiple copies across Europe, making him famous far beyond his hometown of Nuremberg.

His 1515 woodcut of a rhinoceros, based on a written description and sketch rather than the animal itself, became the standard European image of a rhinoceros for centuries, despite its inaccurate armored plates. Dürer used a distinctive 'AD' monogram and complained when others copied his prints, an early sign of concern over artistic ownership. Printmaking made art cheaper and more widely available, and it would soon become a powerful tool in religious debates.