Saint Eligius and King Dagobert
1520/30
Medium
Engraving in black on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Sheet, cut to platemark: 8.1 × 8.1 cm (3 1/4 × 3 1/4 in.)
Classification
engraving
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
4422
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The son of a goldsmith, Gourmont drew on his family background for this roundel showing the patron saint of goldsmiths, Eligius, and the king he frequently advised. Eligius, his halo encircling his head, busily hammers out a golden disc on an anvil while his assistant mans the bellows. Dagobert, wearing a slender crown that Eligius may himself have wrought, gestures from the throne. The king was said to have valued the saint’s opinion over that of court nobles. Eligius was a famous goldsmith to...