Lodewijk XV 1768 - 1771

This print of Lodewijk XV, was made by Jean Charles Delafosse in the 18th century. It’s a fascinating dance of symbols. Note the radiant face at the top, framed by sunbursts of light: Justice, holding scales, as a divine entity. We find similar solar imagery across cultures, from Apollo in ancient Greece to the sun gods of Egypt, each embodying enlightenment and order. Now, consider the columns: architectural symbols of strength and stability, here adorned with ribbons, and flanking an idyllic scene with a single column. This motif of a single column in a pastoral landscape evokes ideals of classical antiquity, a yearning for a lost golden age of harmony and reason. But observe: time is not linear, it spirals. These symbols reappear, transformed, in different epochs. Justice, sometimes blindfolded, still seeks balance. The columns, now ruins, remind us of the transient nature of power. Such enduring symbols reflect our collective subconscious, resurfacing across history, perpetually reinterpreted.