Original 18th-century engraved copperplate from Low Countries.

[Copperplate]. S. Maria. S.l. [Antwerp?]: s.n., s.a. [likely 18th century]. [7.3 x 5.3 cm the plate; 11.0 x 7.4 cm the envelope], [1] original copperplate, with a modern envelope to which is affixed a modern strike from the plate. Plate well preserved; modern print and envelope well preserved.        
 
 
Original 18th-century etched copperplate—a rare survival—depicting a Christ Child giving the sign of benediction and holding the orbis mundi. He is seated on the lap of the Virgin. They are framed by an oval wreath.
 
The plate is unsigned but is consistent with work from the Low Countries. Antwerp is the likely place of origin, but the etcher’s deft use of the needle is in the mode of Rembrandt and points to a draftsman of greater pretensions than the typical Antwerp maker of devotional prints.
 
The fresh image quality of the modern strike indicates that the copperplate was not run through the press until worn out, as was often the fate of popular prints of this sort. I locate no contemporary copies of this print surviving today (at the major repositories for such items, e.g., the Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht, or the University of Antwerp).
 
* E.-H. van Heurck, “Les images de dévotion Anversoises,” De Gulden Passer, vol. 8 (1930), pp. 67-166; O. Thiers, ’t Putje van Heiloo bedevaarten naar O.L. Vrouw ter Nood; E. M. F. Verheggen, Beelden voor Passie & Hartstocht: Bid- en devotieprenten in de Noordelijke Nederlanden, 17de en 18de eeuw.