"Ovales"-
Engraving from Diderot's Encylopedia
"Ovales"
Plate VIII
A study of Heads - Beautiful 18th Century
copperplate engraving from Diderot's encylopedia
from the chapter providing lessons in Drawing
('Dessein') published circa 1770.
18th Century engraving illustrating
how to draw heads in different positions from
the Encyclopedie published by Diderot
and D'Alembert during the age of enlightenment
in the second half of the 18th Century.
Engraved on beautiful watermarked
handlaid chainlinked paper.
The Encyclopedie, ou Dictionnaire
Raisonne des Sciences, des Arts et des Metiers
was published in Paris between 1762-1777.
A masterpiece of the enlightment, it set out
all the knowledge of the day, and was a first
attempt to document the techniques of mechanical
production for objects used in everyday life.
Scholars from around the world, including Benjamin
Franklin and Thomas Jefferson submitted chapters.
Denis Diderot was a French philosopher,
and man of letters, and the chief editor of
the L'Encyclopédie, one of the principal
achievements of the Age of Enlightenment. He
was a a friend of the great minds of his age
including Goethe, Rousseau, and Hume. A freethinker,
Diderot challenged the authority of the Church
and criticized the French system of government.
Engraved by Robert Benard and
signed in the plate by the engraver (Benard
Fecit).
Robert Benard engraved most of the plates for
Diderot's Encyclopedia. He was also an engraver
of maps whose work appeared in the French editions
of "Cook's Voyages."
Condition: Excellent. Slightly
rough edges
Dimensions: 10 X 15.75 inches
