Allegory of the Medici Family with river gods in the foreground and in the clouds at right

Printmaking in woodcut and engraving came to Northern Italy within a few decades of their invention north of the Alps. Engraving probably came first to Florence in the 1440s, the goldsmith Maso Finiguerra (1426–64) used the technique. Italian engraving caught the very early Renaissance, 1460–1490. Print copying was a widely accepted practice, as well as copying of paintings viewed as images in their own right.

Jacopo Ligozzi was an Italian painter, illustrator and naturalist who lived and worked in Florence during the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. He was born in Verona in 1547 and trained in Florence under Giovanni Battista Zelotti and Giambologna. Ligozzi was known for his highly detailed and realistic botanical illustrations, commissioned by the Medici family and other wealthy patrons. He also painted religious and mythological scenes, as well as portraits and still lifes. In addition to his artistic pursuits, Ligozzi was a respected naturalist who collected and studied plants and animals. In 1577 he was appointed official court painter and naturalist to Grand Duke Ferdinando I de' Medici, a position he held for over 50 years. Ligozzi's work was highly influential in the development of botanical illustration and natural history during the Renaissance. His illustrations were widely circulated and used as models by other artists and scientists throughout Europe. Ligozzi died in Florence in 1627, leaving a legacy as one of the most important naturalists and illustrators of his time.