Portret van Jérôme Bignon 1686

Antoine Masson rendered this likeness of Jérôme Bignon in printmaking. Consider the elaborate wig: in its time, it was a potent symbol of status and power, not merely a fashion statement. It speaks volumes about Bignon's position in society, echoing the grandiosity found in royal portraits across Europe. The wig, however, is not simply a marker of status. Think of the Gorgon Medusa, whose hair was transformed into snakes, each strand a symbol of terror and power. Or the flowing locks of mythological gods, signifying vitality and divine energy. The wig, too, becomes a kind of symbolic mane, an outward projection of inner strength and authority. Observe how such symbols evolve, shedding old skins and adopting new meanings. What was once a sign of virility becomes a marker of social rank. These shifts are not linear but cyclical, constantly resurfacing, transformed, and reinterpreted through the collective memory of mankind.