The Temptation of St Anthony

This print was modelled on a painting created by Tintoretto in 1577 for the Church San Trovaso in Venice. As the plate shows numerous parallels with Agostino’s earliest works in its use of the burin and light and shade effects, scholars tend to consider the sheet to be his oldest engraving based on Tintoretto’s painting. Agostino’s trip to Venice in 1582 was a turning point in his graphic art. In his engravings inspired by the Venetian paintings he had seen during his sojourn there, he reached the peak of artistic maturity.