The Magdalene kneeling, from 'Recueil d'estampes d'après les plus célèbres tableaux de la Galerie Royale de Dresde'

Art Historical Context

Behold *The Magdalene Kneeling*, a striking 18th-century print the *Recueil d'estamp d'après les plus célè tableaux de la Galerie Royale Dresde*, a celebrated series reproducing masterpieces from the Dresden Royal Gallery. between 1730 and 1786 by Venetian engraver Marco Alvise Pitteri and French etcher Pierre Hutin after Jusepe de Rib's dramatic Baroque painting—by the Spanish master known as "Lo Spletto"—it captures Mary Magdalene in a moment of profound devotion. Kneeling in contemplation, she is surrounded by angels and a coat of arms, evoking the intense spirituality and tenebrist shadows characteristic of Ribera's tenebroso style, which emphasized raw emotion and chiaroscuro light. Executed in etching and engraving on chine collé—a refined technique adhering delicate Chinese paper to a sturdy support for exceptional detail and tonal subtlety—this large plate (18⅛ × 12⅞ inches) allowed widespread appreciation of elite royal collections. Prints like this democratized art, bridging 17th-century Spanish realism with Enlightenment-era connoisseurship, while honoring Magdalene as a symbol of repentance and redemption in Catholic iconography. Today, this gift to the Metropolitan Museum of Art from George Hellman in 1942 invites visitors to ponder how reproductions preserved cultural treasures amid shifting empires. A testament to collaborative artistry, it whispers of faith's enduring power.

About the Artist

Marco Alvise Pitteri|Pierre Hutin|Jusepe de Ribera (called Lo Spagnoletto) · 1702–1786

Comment on works: Copper engraver