Le Chancelier Michel IV Le Tellier

About this artwork

This prints by french artist Robert Nanteuil exemplifies the artistic achievements of 1662. The artist's work in engraving demonstrates the importance of printmaking as both an artistic medium and a means of disseminating images widely. Executed in engraving, this work demonstrates the sophisticated technical processes involved in printmaking. The medium required specialized knowledge of materials, tools, and procedures, including preparing plates or blocks, applying ink, and achieving even pres...

Art Historical Context

Robert Nanteuil's *Le Chancelier Michel Le Tellier* (1662) is a masterful engraving portraying the prominent French statesman and Chancellor under Louis XIV. As one of the era's leading portrait engravers, Nanteuil the subject's dignified presence, complete with a coat of arms symbolizing noble status and authority. Created during the height of the French Baroque period, this print reflects the grandeur of the Sun King's court, where such images served to commemorate powerful figures and disseminate their likenesses across Europe. Engraving, Nanteuil's specialty, involved incising intricate l...

About the Artist

Robert Nanteuil · 1623–1678

Robert Nanteuil (1623-1678) was a French portrait engraver, draughtsman, and pastellist who became the preeminent portraitist to the court of Louis XIV. His technical mastery and royal patronage fundamentally transformed the status of engraving in France, elevating it from a mechanical craft to a recognized fine art. Nanteuil stands as the outstanding French portrait engraver of the seventeenth c...