A Last Judgment Print from Flanders: Paths of Michelangelo toward Spanish America

Abstract

An image. An emblematic commercialized paper product of theearly modern age. An object conceived as a multiple, to be replicated in many ways. In thisway, this image can’t be understood in isolation, but part of an intertwined network ofpaintings and prints related to a common denominator. The print in this case, is not anyimage, but replicates the well-known fresco of the Last Judgment painted by Michelangeloin the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel between 1536 and 1541. The engraver for this particular print was Johannes Wierix, who engraved the plate in the second half of the 16th century. Indeed, the printed image is the result of the engraving technique, which involves another object: a metal plate carved with a burin, to produce incised lines and dots, creating a design. These incised lines were filled with ink for the plate to be printed on paper using a press, creating the final product of this process: the printed Last Judgment. The aim of this essay is to single out a print which, as part of abroader network of images, was created as a strategic visual quotation, one that recoversand enhances the recognition of Michelangelo’s design.