Daniel Hopfer
German, 1470-1536
The Last Judgment, c. 1525
Etching on iron

Endless multitudes of human figures, celestial angels and demonic creatures fill the sheet. Daniel Hopfer meticulously renders the Last Judgment as described in the Book of Matthew, where Christ separates the righteous from the condemned. Above, the commanding figure of God, the Father, oversees the expanse of humanity. As a printmaking technique, etching evolved from the armorer trade, where intricate motifs were etched into metal armor as decoration. Hopfer was notably the first to adapt this practice to create original prints on paper. Here, he demonstrates the extraordinary level of fine detail that is possible with the etching medium.