Nicolas Grillié, Bishop of Uzès
Medium
Engraving; first state of four
Dimensions
sheet: 13 3/4 x 9 1/4 in. (35 x 23.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1953
Accession Number
53.601.282
Tags
Art Historical Context
This striking engraving by Claude Mellan captures Nicolas Grillié, who served as Bishop of Uzès until his death in 1660. Created as a formal portrait, the work presents the bishop in ecclesiastical attire, accompanied by his coat of arms—a detail that underscores his status within the French Catholic Church during the seventeenth century. Mellan, a leading French printmaker of the Baroque era, specialized in such dignified likenesses of clergy and nobility, using engraving to preserve their images for wider circulation. As a first-state impression, this print represents an early stage in the ...
About the Artist
Claude Mellan|Nicolas Grillié, died 1660 Uzès · 1598–1688
Claude Mellan (1598-1688) was a French draughtsman, engraver, and painter who became one of the most innovative printmakers of the French Baroque period. Born in Abbeville to a family of coppersmiths, Mellan rose to become Peintre et Graveur Ordinaire du Roi (Painter and Engraver in Ordinary to the King), achieving recognition for his extraordinary technical mastery. Mellan's artistic significanc...