Gezicht op Trsat met figuren bij een doorwaadbare plaats c. 1760

This is Jacques Philippe Le Bas’s, "Gezicht op Trsat met figuren bij een doorwaadbare plaats," an engraving. While undated, it was likely made in the mid-18th century. Le Bas, as a printmaker to the King, lived in a society deeply shaped by patronage and power. The inscription indicates this work was dedicated to Count Maurice de Brühl, chamberlain to the Prince Elector of Saxony, underscoring the relationships between artists and their aristocratic patrons. The scene captures a pastoral moment in Trsat, with figures and animals crossing a shallow river. The landscape is serene, yet it speaks to broader themes of movement and transition. Rivers often serve as both borders and connectors, and this one is no different. The figures wading through suggest a journey, a crossing from one place or state to another. It invites us to consider the perspectives of those often unseen in such idyllic landscapes.