Goltzius was born in Germany, but received his early training from a Netherlandish artist, Dirck Volckhertsz Coornhert. After the Spanish left Haarlem in 1577, he followed his mentor to the city, where he remained for the rest of his life.1 In his early years of printmaking, Goltzius' style was not very distinguishable from the styles of other northern Netherlandish artists. Around the year 1582, however, Goltzius made the acquaintance of Karel van Mander. Van Mander was a painter and biographer of other artists. Through him, Goltzius was introduced to a Mannerist style of engraving.2 In this tradition, the figures in his prints are portrayed in twisted poses with exaggerated three-dimensionality.

His technique of line-engraving also reached its technical peak at this time. He perfected the use of parallel swelling lines to add tonal depth to his figures. This type of engraving is best seen today on dollar bills.3 The ability to achieve the broad spiralling stroke that made him famous may well have been the result of an unfortunate mishap in his childhood. When he was three years old, Goltzius was burned in a fire. Both of his hands were burned, but the fingers on his right hand never healed properly, remaining in a clenched position. Therefore, while drawing with his left hand, Goltzius taught himself to engrave with his right hand.4 Perhaps because he had to use only arm and shoulder motion in his engraving, a broad curving line was produced.5

Through the broad appeal of his prints, Goltzius became very popular in his own lifetime. Around 1590, he took a trip to Italy, following the same route his engravings took in their distribution.6 To avoid being recognized, he went incognito. This allowed him to work without interruption, and also to hear opinions on his prints. This trip to Italy also had an impact on his career. At this point, he abandoned the earlier style of the Mannerists and devoted himself to imitating the styles of the old masters such as Dürer and Leyden. A published edition of what he called the Masterpieces of Goltzius was actually a collection of prints made in the style of these masters. By removing his monogram, some where even mistaken to be unknown works by Dürer and van Leyden.7 After 1600, his career took yet another turn. He devoted the majority of his work to painting and made only a very few additional engravings before his death in 1617.

The prints in the Wake Forest collection belong to the years between his initial development of line-engraving and his trip to Italy. In Calphurnius, a print taken from Goltzius' series, Roman Heroes, the perfection of his line-engraving technique can be seen. In each of the prints in the series, Goltzius illustrated the acts that made them heroes in the background. This action is overwhelmed, however, by the monumental figure in the foreground. Marcus Calphurnius Flama was a Roman hero who, with only 300 soldiers, saved the consul Attilius Calatinus from a Carthaginian ambush attack during the First Punic War (264-241 B.C.).8 His tall frame is scantily clothed, revealing his massive muscles. Goltzius intersects curving lines and uses enclosed dots to create a sculptural appearance. The figure's stance is twisted in the Mannerist tradition.

St. Philip, done several years after the Roman Heroes series, is also done in the same style. This print comes from a series called Christ and the Apostles, which also included St. Paul. St. Philip, holding a long cross, which is an icon familiar with the saint, is posed in a slightly contorted manner, as is Calphurnius. This print does not have the same force of the Calphurnius print, however, in that it lacks the intensified three-dimensionality of the latter.

1. Bartsch, III (comm.), 7.
2. Bartsch, III (comm.), 7.
3. Mayor, 1971, ?.
4. Melion, 1991, 58-9.
5. Mayor, ?.
6. Melion, 44.
7. Melion, 46.
8. Bartsch, III (comm.), 100.