# Bernard Picart artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/bernard-picart/
Profile generated: 2026-05-11T21:10:27.406Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1673-06-11
- Death date: 1733-05-08
- Nationality: French, Dutch
- Movements: Late Baroque / early Enlightenment-era printmaking
- Common media: engraving, etching, mezzotint, painting, drawing, miniature painting, book illustration and publishing

## About Bernard Picart

Bernard Picart (1673–1733) was a French engraver, printmaker, etcher, and publisher who spent his most productive years in Amsterdam. Trained by his father, the engraver Etienne Picart (known as le Romain), Bernard mastered multiple printmaking techniques — engraving, etching, and mezzotint — and became one of the most prolific book illustrators of the early eighteenth century. He is best known for his ambitious illustrated survey of world religious practices, produced in collaboration with the scholar Jean-Frédéric Bernard, as well as extensive plate work for classical mythology, biblical narratives, and decorative title pages. After establishing himself in Paris, Picart relocated to Amsterdam around 1710, where he operated a large workshop and publishing enterprise until his death. His detailed, narrative-rich engravings circulated widely across Europe and remain a significant reference for the visual culture of the Enlightenment period.

## Common works and media

Picart's output spans engraved book illustrations, large-format ceremonial plates, mythological and biblical scene prints, portrait engravings, decorative title pages, and book-plate designs. He worked extensively in copper-plate engraving and etching, with some mezzotints. His most commonly encountered works at auction are individual engraved plates from illustrated volumes, particularly scenes depicting religious ceremonies, episodes from Ovid's Metamorphoses and the Hebrew Bible, and ornamental frontispieces. Complete or partial copies of his illustrated books also appear on the market.

## Market and appraisal context

Bernard Picart's prints appear regularly at auction, especially single plates extracted from his illustrated books and complete bound volumes of his major works. Condition, impression quality, and whether a plate is an early pull or a later re-strike are primary factors in determining value. Large-format ceremonial or mythological engravings tend to attract stronger interest than smaller text illustrations. Collectors should be aware that Picart's workshop produced many plates after his designs, so attribution can be nuanced. Hand-colored examples and well-preserved impressions on original laid paper with good margins generally command a premium.

## Appraisily data basis

This artist page combines identity research grounded in Getty ULAN, VIAF, the Library of Congress authority file, the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History, and Wikidata, with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lot data from Appraisily and Invaluable where those records are available.

## Sources

- RKD — Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/63267
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q559929
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500001805
- VIAF (OCLC): https://viaf.org/viaf/64010408/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79112983