"Portrait of French playwright Molière, after Bourdon; three-quarter length, sitting at desk, directed to left, hands folded on table, wearing long curled wig and loose-fitting gown; in rectangular frame, with spread wings and ivy in upper part, and attributes of comedy in lower part. ... Ribbon at bottom with verses [in Latin] by Horat."--British Museum online catalogue, description of a variant state
Alternative Title:
Jean Baptiste Poquelin de Molière
Description:
Title from from text within cartouche at top of image., Variant state, lacking imprint statement and with verses from Chenier engraved below image instead of a dedication. For a different state with the imprint "A Paris chez le Sr De Mailly, Quay de l'Ecole près le Louvre Avec Privilége du Roy", see British Museum online catalogue, registration no.: R,6.236., Place and date of publication from the Philadelphia Museum of Art online collection database, accession no.: 1943-50-23., Sheet trimmed within plate mark and multilated in lower left corner, resulting in partial loss of artist's name., Window mounted to 51 x 36 cm., and Mounted opposite page 187 (leaf numbered '228' in pencil) in volume 1 of an extra-illustrated copy of: Moore, T. Memoirs of the life of the Right Honourable Richard Brinsley Sheridan.