Vignette with a Medal depicting Harpocrate and Lotus Flowers, Volume I, Page 12, from Description des Principales Pierres gravées du Cabinet de S.A.S. Monseigneur le Duc d'Orléans Premier Prince du sang. A Paris chez M. l'abbé de la Chau au Palais-Royal M. l'abbé Le Blond au collége Mazarin Et chez Pissot, libraire, quai des Augustins

Art Historical Context

This exquisite etching and engraving, created by Augustin de Saint-Aubin around 1778–80, graces page 12 of Volume I in *Description des Principales Pier gravées du Cabinet de S.S. Monseigneur le Duc d'Orléans Published in Paris by collaborators including L'Abbé de la Chau, L'Abbé Le Blond, andissot, the book catalogs the elite gem collection of Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, reflecting the 18th-century French aristocracy's passion for classical antiquities during the Enlightenment. Such catalogs were scholarly treasures, blending art, history, and connoisseurship to showcase intaglios and cameos as windows into ancient worlds. The vignette centers on a medal portraying Harpocrates—the youthful Greek god of silence, often syncretized with the Egyptian child Horus—amidst delicate lotus flowers, symbols of rebirth and the Nile in ancient Egyptian lore. Saint-Aubin's precise etching and engraving techniques, in the third (final) state as cataloged by Bocher, capture intricate details on a modest sheet of 11 5/8 × 8 11/16 inches. Lotuses frame the composition, evoking mystery and exotic allure. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, this print highlights the era's revival of Greco-Roman and Egyptian motifs, bridging scholarly documentation with artistic finesse. A testament to 18th-century printmaking virtuosity, it invites visitors to ponder the enduring fascination with ancient gems among Europe's elite collectors.

About the Artist

Augustin de Saint-Aubin|Pissot|L'Abbé La Chau|L'Abbé Le Blond · 1736–1807

Comment on works: Illustrator; Engraver