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Jacques Fabien Gautier d'Agoty

Cranial Dissection, plate five from Anatomy of the Head, in Printed Paintings

1748
Color mezzotint, with touches of engraving on cream laid paper, varnished
32 × 40 cm (12.6 × 15.7 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

In the dedication of his book, to King Louis XV, Gautier D’Agoty justified his subject matter in true Enlightenment form by pointing out that the head most differentiates men from animals and is “the Temple of Wisdom, and Sanctuary of Virtue.” Gautier offered his “printed paintings” to the king as a substitute for observing the dissected specimens in person: “YOUR MAJESTY would not deign to cast his eyes on these marvels from too close and affecting a distance. I present them to you faithfully printed after nature. My burin will save you the horror that nature itself would inspire in you.”

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