Lion, Dragon and Fox
Jean de Gourmont I
1520–1551
- Medium
- Engraving on ivory laid paper
- Dimensions
- Plate: 11.3 × 15.8 cm (4 1/2 × 6 1/4 in.); Sheet: 11.4 × 16.1 cm (4 1/2 × 6 3/8 in.)
- Genre
- Engravings
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Tags
engravingprintprints and drawingpaper (fiber product)
About
Based on a lost drawing by Leonardo da Vinci, this oval allegory of battling mythical beasts was translated into several different engravings by Italian Renaissance artists as well as by Jean de Gourmont. The banner above the three animals reads “Ergo,” literally meaning “therefore,” a term whose broader significance within this setting is unknown. The print may be a civic political emblem of the lion of Venice attacking the Milan dragon, with an unaffiliated fox as onlooker.
