Les divers pourtraicts et figures III c. 1600

This engraving by Master AD depicts four scenes of children fighting, full of symbolic tension. The motif of children fighting appears throughout history, embodying a complex interplay of innocence and aggression. The fruit tree in the first panel suggests a lost paradise, while the animals hanging in the subsequent scenes hint at darker, more primal instincts. These juxtaposed symbols evoke a sense of unease, of a world where playful innocence is constantly threatened by violence. We see echoes of this motif in ancient Roman art and Renaissance paintings, where children, often Cupids, engage in playful but sometimes aggressive interactions. This speaks to a collective memory, a subconscious acknowledgment of the inherent duality within human nature. The intensity of these scenes engages viewers on a primal level, tapping into our own buried anxieties about aggression. The cyclical progression of this symbol is clear. It resurfaces throughout history, evolving in meaning yet always retaining its core tension between innocence and violence.