Design for an Altar, Plate 1 from an Untitled Series of Designs for Altars

Art Historical Context

"Design for an Altar, 1 from an Untitled Series of Designs for Alt" is a captivating etching created around 1750–56 by the collaborative talents of Jacob Gottlieb Thelot Carl Pier, and Martinbrecht. Measuring 8 7/16 × 13 3/4 inches, this print showcases intricate ornamental designs for ecclesiastical altars, reflecting the opulent architectural tastes of mid-18th-century Europe Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, it was acquired through the Daniel Ergmann Gift in2014. Etching, the medium here, allowed these artists to produce finely detailed reproductions of elaborate altar motifs, blending symmetry, scrolling foliage, and symbolic elements typical of Baroque and emerging Rococo styles. Such prints served as practical models for craftsmen, disseminating sophisticated church decoration ideas across workshops in German-speaking regions, where Engelbrecht, a prolific Augsburg engraver, was particularly active. This plate, the first in an untitled series classified under Ornament & Architecture Albums, highlights the era's fusion of piety and artistry. Visitors will appreciate how these designs bridged religious devotion with aesthetic innovation, inviting us to envision grand altars adorning candlelit sanctuaries of the time.

About the Artist

Jacob Gottlieb Thelot|Carl Pier|Martin Engelbrecht (Central European|German|German) · |1700 |1684 – |1790 |1756

German, Augsburg 1708–1760 Augsburg|German, active Augsburg, ca. 1750|German, Augsburg 1684–1756 Augsburg