c. 1512
Lucas Cranach the Elder German, 1472-1553
Germany
Lucas Cranach’s depiction of the martyrdom of Saint Matthew gruesomely displays his decapitated head bouncing away from his body, which is still bleeding. This single-sheet impression dates from the first printing of the series in 1512. These woodblocks were later reused in a 1548 printing of The Apostles Creed, which also included tamer views of saints’ enshrined remains from Cranach’s 1509 Reliquary Book.
Woodcut in black on ivory laid paper