Design for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the Zodiac

Design for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the Zodiac

Anonymous, French, 17th century

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Based on its style, this ceiling design appears to be French, dating to the late seventeenth or perhaps the beginning of the eighteenth century. Apollo, holding his attribute of the lyre, appears at center, traversing the sky and following the arc of the zodiac. Allegorical figures representing the four continents are centered on each side, and ornamental designs featuring medallions containing scenes in bas-relief fill the corners. Executed in chalk, ink, and wash, this highly finished design may have been intended as a presentation drawing.

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Design for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the ZodiacDesign for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the ZodiacDesign for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the ZodiacDesign for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the ZodiacDesign for the Decoration of a Ceiling with the Allegories of the Four Continents and the Signs of the Zodiac

The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.