diff -r df7ce3e1f44d -r fc3621302cfe docutil/docsvg.py
--- a/docutil/docsvg.py	Thu Feb 15 17:03:06 2024 +0100
+++ b/docutil/docsvg.py	Tue Feb 20 14:53:33 2024 +0100
@@ -76,8 +76,12 @@
     inkpath = get_inkscape_path()
     if inkpath is None:
         return None
-    return list(map(int, 
-        subprocess.check_output([inkpath,"--version"]).split()[1].split(b'.')))
+    version_string = subprocess.check_output(
+            [inkpath,"--version"], 
+            stderr=subprocess.STDOUT)
+    if version_string:
+        return list(map(int,version_string.split()[1].split(b'.')))
+    return [0,0]
 
 _inkscape_version = None
 def get_inkscape_version():