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La rareté à l’épreuve du multiple: L’introduction des tirages limités dans le commerce de l’estampe (XVIIe-XVIIIe siècles)

Nowadays, there is no doubt that early modern prints played an instrumental role in the development of European visual culture by allowing for the reproduction and dissemination of a vast number of pictures. This article attempts to show how, in this context, print amateurs developed a certain awareness of rarity and then attributed to the latter a specific value. It then describes the development of early limited print editions intended to produce scarce impressions and give them additional value.
Relevant research areas: Western Europe, Baroque, 18th Century, Engraving, Etching