"IN MAY 2009, I was searching the website of a favorite New York print shop. I’ve long had a fascination for engraved prints and admired the extraordinary skill that they require. In the 18th and 19th centuries, they were the posters of the day: like the Picasso or O’Keeffe reproductions that decorate many a dorm room or apartment, engraved prints allowed new or familiar artworks to enter middle-class homes. Unlike a Picasso poster, however, a fine engraving could take months to prepare. But the result was affordable art. " While few could purchase an original Gainsborough or Turner, many might acquire an engraver’s skillfully wrought copy. Over the centuries, notable artists from Dürer to Warhol have turned their talents to the printing press, creating original works in small or large editions. Today, when the price of quality paintings is far beyond most of us, many historical prints remain affordable.