Het martelaarschap van Paulus

1575

Apprenticeship with Dirck Coornhert

His father placed Hendrick as an apprentice to the philosopher, theologian and engraver Dirck Volckertszoon Coornhert, then working in Xanten, so that his son could master the art of engraving.

1577

Move to Haarlem

He followed Coornhert to Haarlem, where he remained for the rest of his life. There the publisher Philips Galle hired him to engrave a series of prints on the story of Lucretia; in the following years Goltzius engraved after the designs of other artists for Coornhert and for Antwerp publishers.

1577

Teacher: Dirck Volckertszoon Coornhert

1579

Marriage to a wealthy widow

At 21 he married a wealthy widow considerably older than himself. The "unequal marriage" gave him economic independence: he bought a house, opened his own engraving workshop, and two years later took on two apprentices.

late 1580s

Depression and consumption

From the late 1580s he suffered from depression and consumption; his family life was unhappy.

c. 1584

Meeting Karel van Mander

He met the painter and his future biographer Karel van Mander, a refugee from Flanders, who introduced him to the drawings of Bartholomeus Spranger, then working in Prague for Rudolf II. Spranger's works exerted a significant influence on Goltzius's art.