Maulstick
Appearance
A mahlstick, or maulstick, is a stick with a soft leather or padded head used by painters to support the hand holding the paintbrush. The word derives from the Dutch maalstok 'painter's stick', from malen 'to paint'.
In 16th- through 19th-century paintings of artists, including self-portraits, the maulstick is often depicted as part of the painter's equipment.
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William-Adolphe Bouguereau holding painting implements
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Self portrait of Caterina van Hemessen
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Self-portrait by Sofonisba Anguissola
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Portrait of Eva Gonzalès, by Édouard Manet
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Detail of Vermeer's Art of Painting with artist using mahlstick
References
- public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Maulstick". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 904. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the