Design for a Title Page: A General and His Army Looking at a Map. 1665 - 1720

Jan Antoine Coxie designed this title page in pen and brown ink, with brush and gray wash, over black chalk around the late 17th to early 18th century. The drawing presents a classical scene teeming with figures under a tented canopy, exhibiting Coxie's mastery in organizing a complex composition. The subdued palette accentuates the dramatic interaction between the figures, drawing our eyes to the general and his staff intently studying a map. The artist’s delicate use of line and wash skillfully models the figures, rendering a tangible sense of depth and space. The classical setting, along with the emphasis on rational planning before conflict, highlights the era's interest in aligning military strategy with intellectual prowess. Coxie uses the pictorial space to discuss the role of reason in the theater of war. Note the sword at the bottom of the page—a symbol of power rendered inert, as if strategy, rather than brute force, is the true instrument of command. The drawing serves as a reminder of the shifting values and intellectual debates that shaped early modern European thought.