Time, Apollo and the Seasons 1662

This etching by Claude Lorrain, titled "Time, Apollo and the Seasons," showcases the artist's mastery of landscape and classical mythology. Created in 1662, the artwork depicts Apollo, the god of music and light, leading a procession of the Seasons through a verdant, idealized landscape. The figures are shown dancing in a circle, celebrating the cyclical nature of time and the changing seasons. Lorrain’s precise and detailed etching style captures the atmospheric quality of the scene, with a focus on light and shadow. The presence of Roman ruins adds a historical and allegorical layer to the composition. This print, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, exemplifies Lorrain’s significant contribution to the development of the landscape genre in European art.