Frontispiece for an edition of "Les Ballades" by Théodore de Banville 1874

"Frontispiece for an edition of 'Les Ballades' by Théodore de Banville," an etching created in 1874 by Édouard Manet, features a seated figure of the poet Théodore de Banville, a prolific French poet and playwright. The image evokes a sense of contemplation as de Banville holds a quill pen, seemingly lost in thought. Above him, a series of fragmented figures and objects float in the background, hinting at the world of poetry and imagination that de Banville inhabited. Manet's etching, a significant example of his printmaking work, is now part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection.