The Wedding of Cupid and Psyche

This complex print is a tour-de-force of composition and technical brilliance. The scene--a marriage feast of the gods--comprises more than 80 figures and had to be printed from three plates onto three sheets of paper. Goltzius's inimitable engraving technique is on full display here, his sinuous lines swelling and tapering to sculpt the rounded forms. The elegant figures assume every pose imaginable to display their rippling musculature and exaggerated grace.