The Pope and the Grindstone: A Jacobean Satirical Print

This notice expands upon the recent rediscovery of a Jacobean engraving of the pope having his nose held to a grindstone, all impressions of which had been thought by historians of early modern England to have been destroyed soon after its publication. Further analysis of this print demonstrates its thematic and compositional influence on subsequent examples of political graphic satire and questions the effectiveness of its initial censorship following the protests of the Spanish ambassador in London. Consideration is also given to the likely engraver responsible for this contentious print, Renold Elstrack.