The King receiving his scepter from the hands of Providence (Le Roi reçoit son sceptre des mains de la Providence)

Etienne Delaune French

Not on view

Etching, part of a series of nine round prints with emblematic subjects of the glory of Henry II, all with dark backgrounds made up of thin, horizontal lines, and with a white exergue on the bottom, likely destined for inscriptions. In this etching, the King appears on the left, dressed in classical garb, receiving a scepter from God's hand, which appears from a cloud, floating on the upper part of the etching. To the right, four crowned deities, representing the four elements, presence the occasion. Earth is personified by Saturn, armed with his scythe, a serpent biting its tail, forming a circle, lies at his feet, representing an attribute of time. Water is personified by Neptune, holding his trident. Air is represented by Eole, holding a head blowing the wind in his right hand, which stretches toward the sky, and a scepter with a fleur de lis on the point in the other hand. Lastly, fire is personified by Jupiter, holding his lightning, an eagle at his feet.

No image available

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.