Artwork
La fiancee du roi de Garbe: La cassette
La fiancee du roi de Garbe: La cassette is an ink print by the Baroque artist Jean-Baptiste Tilliard. It dates from 1776 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Jean-Baptiste Tilliard’s 1776 etching titled *La fiancée du roi de Garbe: La cassette* presents a compact, narrative scene rendered on paper. The work measures the typical dimensions of a single-sheet print and exemplifies the late‑18th‑century French approach to narrative engraving, combining figural drama with a detailed landscape.
Subject & Meaning
The composition depicts a woman in flowing garments grasping a small box, her posture tense as a rooster pecks at the sand beside her.
The composition depicts a woman in flowing garments grasping a small box, her posture tense as a rooster pecks at the sand beside her. Beyond them, a solitary tree clings to a craggy cliff while several ships navigate choppy seas. The juxtaposition of domestic concern, animal presence, and maritime activity suggests a moment of suspense, perhaps alluding to a mythic or literary episode involving a royal betrothal.
Technique & Style
Tilliard employed the traditional etching process, incising fine lines into a copper plate with acid-resistant ground before exposing the metal to acid. The resulting prints display delicate hatching that conveys the texture of turbulent water, the sheen of fabric, and the ruggedness of the rock. The precise linework and controlled tonal variation are characteristic of French printmaking in the 1770s.
History & Provenance
Created in 1776, the print belongs to the later period of Tilliard’s career, during which he produced a series of narrative etchings for the French market. While specific ownership records are scarce, the work has appeared in several 19th‑century catalogues of French prints and is now held in museum collections that focus on Enlightenment-era graphic art.
Artist & collection
