Gustave Doré, calling card
ca. 1849–83
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/8 in. × 4 in. (6 × 10.1 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ephemera|Calling cards
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of F. C. Schang, 1977
Accession Number
1977.580.13
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the world of 19th-century etiquette with this charming engraving, a calling card for the renowned French artist Gustave Dor (1832–1883). Produced sometime between circa 1849 and 1883—spanning much of Doré's illustrious career—this petite print (just 2 3/8 × 4 inches) exemplifies ephemera from the Drawings and Prints department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Calling cards were essential accessories for the elite, left during visits to announce one's arrival or request an audience, much like a modern business card but infused with Victorian flair. Though the artist is listed as an...
About the Artist
Anonymous|Gustave Doré
In the vast tapestry of art history, "Anonymous" stands not as a singular individual but as a collective designation for countless unidentified creators whose works have endured across millennia. These artists, spanning prehistoric cave painters to medieval illuminators and folk craftsmen, produced the foundational layers of human visual culture. Prior to the Renaissance, when individual fame emer...