Not happy about others profiting from his work, Dürer designed the monogram at left. He used it to show which works were really his. But people kept copying him anyway—including the monogram.
According to legend, when Dürer heard about an Italian artist named Marcantonio Raimondi selling copies of his work, the German artist decided enough was enough. He took Raimondi to court, where he was granted history’s first copyright for an image.
Celebrating his victory, Dürer exclaimed, “You crafty ones, strangers to work, and pilferers of other men’s brains. Think not rashly to lay your thievish hands upon my works.” He threatened any who considered copying him, saying, “If you do so . . . not only will your goods be confiscated, but your bodies also placed in mortal danger.”
Despite Dürer’s bluster, the court did give Raimondi permission to reproduce Dürer’s prints—he just had to make it clear that they were copies.