Ontwerpen voor horlogekasten en een wapenschild 1703

Pierre Bourdon designed these watch case and coat of arms blueprints with pen and gray ink in the 17th century. The visual language of the Baroque period, with its exuberant ornamentation, is in full bloom here, with swirling acanthus leaves and fanciful figures. Consider the recurring motif of the human face emerging from foliage. This echoes the ancient Green Man, a symbol found in cultures across Europe and beyond, representing the life force of nature and the cycle of growth and decay. Bourdon’s delicate renderings remind me of similar faces peering out from Gothic cathedrals, symbols of pagan origins now interwoven with Christian art. The inclusion of cherubic figures and heraldic symbols taps into a deep vein of collective memory. These symbols evoke a sense of lineage and history, hinting at the aspirations and anxieties of the time. They are like echoes of a past life, resurfacing in a new form, constantly reinventing themselves through time.