Enigmes Joyeuses pour les Bons Esprits
Group of 9 plates from a total of 10 with small domestic scenes, engraved by Jan van Haelbeeck, one of the first wave of Flemish artist to establish themselves in Paris in the early 17th century, which caused a revival in French printmaking and led to the important role France would play as a center of printmaking during the reign of King Louis XIV. Genre scenes of these kind were especially common in Northern Europe in the 17th century, and reveal the everyday lives of people from different strata. In this case, they show women playing instruments or collecting water, household scenes playing games or getting dressed, a woman eating, and people at work. They were made for, or reused by Jean Leclerc around 1615 in the sonnet series ‘Enigmes Joyeuses pour les Bons Esprits’, in which they were each published with a sonnet that hinted at the double meaning of the activities. Although the series is quite rare nowadays, it was very popular and influential in its day. Most copies were likely lost due to the double, slightly erotic meaning of the images and sonnets of the Enigmes.
Artwork Details
- Title: Enigmes Joyeuses pour les Bons Esprits
- Artist: Jan van Haelbeeck (Flemish, active Paris (and Copenhagen?), ca. 1600–1630, died Paris, ca. 1630)
- Artist: Jean Leclerc IV (French, baptized 1560, died Paris, 1622)
- Date: ca. 1615
- Medium: Copper engravings
- Dimensions: Each: 4 5/16 × 5 1/2 in. (11 × 14 cm)
- Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Mary Oenslager Fund, 2016
- Object Number: 2016.360.1–.9
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.