Float with Apollo and the Python, from the fireworks display celebrating Louis XIII's return from a military campaign, Paris, February 1623
1623
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Sheet (Trimmed): 7 15/16 × 11 9/16 in. (20.1 × 29.3 cm)
Classification
Prints|Prints-Fete|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1966
Accession Number
66.500.19
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the grand tradition of Baroque spectacle, Michel Lasne's 1623 etching *Float with Apollo and the Python immortalizes a highlight from a lavish fireworks display in Paris. Held in February to celebrate King Louis XIII's return from a military campaign the event featured elaborate floats blending mythology and pyrotechnics. This float depicts the god Apollo, bow in hand, slaying the Python—a symbol of victory over chaos—echoing the king's martial prowess amid bursts of fireworks and hunting motifs. As a master French engraver, Lasne employed etching, a technique using acid to bite intricate ...
About the Artist
Michel Lasne · 1590–1667
Michel Lasne (ca. 1590–1667) was a French engraver, draughtsman, and collector who became one of the most prolific printmakers of the French Baroque period. Born in Caen around 1590, Lasne was the son of a goldsmith, which provided him with early exposure to metalworking techniques essential for engraving. His career spanned the reigns of Louis XIII and the early years of Louis XIV, during which h...