A detailed sixteenth-century engraving of Saint Matthias by the German artist Sebald Beham, featuring the apostle with his traditional attributes.

This engraving by Sebald Beham depicts Saint Matthias, one of the twelve apostles. Beham, a member of the group known as the Little Masters, produced small-scale prints that demonstrate technical precision and a mastery of the burin. The figure of the saint is rendered with careful attention to the folds of his heavy robes, which create a sense of volume and weight. He holds a book in one hand and an axe in the other, the latter being the traditional attribute associated with his martyrdom.

The composition is contained within a rectangular frame, typical of Beham's series of apostles. Behind the figure, a simple wooden fence provides a sense of space, while the ground is marked by sparse vegetation and a stone block bearing the artist's monogram, HSB. The halo behind the saint's head is executed with fine, radiating lines, a common convention in sixteenth-century printmaking to denote sanctity. The overall approach is one of clarity and restraint, focusing on the characterisation of the saint through his posture and symbolic tools.

Beham's work reflects the broader shift in German art during the Reformation period, where the production of devotional prints remained a significant activity for artists working in Nuremberg. The print exhibits the characteristic linear style of the period, where shading is achieved through parallel hatching and cross-hatching to define form and texture. This piece offers a clear example of the technical standards maintained by the Little Masters, whose output was widely circulated and collected across Europe. The print is presented here with the same attention to detail found in the original, capturing the fine lines and tonal variations of the copperplate engraving process.