Eleonor, Isabeau de Bauieres, Elisabeth, and Julie, from 'The game of queens' (Le jeu des Reines renommées)
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Sheet: 3 9/16 x 8 13/16 in. (9 x 22.4 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011
Accession Number
2012.136.455.8
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the intricate etching *Eleonor, Isabeau de Bauieres, Elisabeth and Julie, from 'The game of queens' (Le jeu des Reinesommées)*, Stefano della Bella captures four renowned queens in a playful yet elegant composition from 1644. Created during the Baroque era, this print is part of a larger series designed for a French parlor game featuring illustrious female rulers, blending entertainment with historical homage. Della Bella, a masterful Italian etcher who worked in Florence and Paris, drew inspiration from earlier printmakers like Jacques Callot, infusing his works with lively detail and dyna...
About the Artist
Stefano della Bella · 1610–1664
Stefano della Bella (1610-1664) was one of the most prolific and versatile printmakers of the Italian Baroque period, leaving behind 1,052 prints and several thousand drawings that captured the vivid essence of 17th-century European life. Born in Florence on May 18, 1610, to a family of artists, he trained initially as a goldsmith before studying painting under Cesare Dandini and etching under Rem...