Titelprent met portret van kunstenaar Andrea Mantegna

About this artwork

Titelprent van een fries dat behalve de titelprent bestaat uit negen prenten die samen een triomftocht van Julius Caesar vormen. Bij de serie hoort tevens een prent met daarop zes Korinthische pilasters, bedoeld om te worden uitgeknipt en gebruikt als verbindingsstukken tussen de verschillende bladen.

Art Historical Context

This striking chiaroscuro woodcut from 1599 serves as the title page to Andrea Andreani’s ambitious print series reproducing Andrea Mantegna’s celebrated *Triumphs of Caesar*. Measuring 410 by 400 millimeters, the sheet features a dignified portrait of Mantegna himself, paying homage to the Renaissance master whose designs of Julius Caesar’s triumphal procession had captivated European audiences for over a century. Andreani, an accomplished Italian printmaker, used the sophisticated chiaroscuro technique—employing multiple woodblocks to achieve rich tonal contrasts—to translate Mantegna’s monumental paintings into a more accessible format. The print introduces a frieze of nine additional sheets that together recreate the grand procession, complete with soldiers, captives, musicians, and spoils of war. A separate sheet of six Corinthian pilasters was also provided, allowing owners to cut out and assemble the prints into a continuous decorative frieze. Created at the close of the sixteenth century, Andreani’s series helped preserve and popularize Mantegna’s classical vision, bridging painting and printmaking while reflecting the Renaissance fascination with ancient Roman glory.