Jean AUDRAN (Lyon 1667 - Paris 1756) Jean PESNE (Rouen 1623 - Paris 1700) "Les quatre saisons" Four original etchings and engravings from subjects by Nicola Poussin published in Paris by Audran himself at his address of the Gobelins around 1700 Beautiful specimens printed on laid paper bearing the "Two-headed Great Eagle surmounted by a scepter" not exactly found in the repertoires but attributable to French paper production of the 18th century, with large margins beyond the imprint of the plate, slightly burnished and with other minimal edge defects such as print folds, small spots and foxing points as well as a tear recomposed in the center of the high edge of the winter subject but overall in excellent general condition. On the reverse of all the sheets there is the ink stamp of the eighteenth-century Bullinger collection (Lugt 3292). Together very rare to find complete and in an old edition like ours, in general there are the late nineteenth century printings made by the chalcography of the Louvre. Nicolas Poussin (1594 - 1665) created the four paintings between 1660 and 1664 on behalf of Cardinal Richelieu, today the large canvases (120 x 160 cm approximately) are kept in the collections of the Louvre Museum. The representations of the Seasons are associated with Old Testament episodes and are set in the four phases of the day, so Spring has Adam and Eve at the center of the composition in a landscape illuminated by the morning light, the Summer sees Ruth and Boaz attend the harvest with the sun in the South, Autumn shows the grape harvest of Canaan in the afternoon and finally Winter is represented by the Flood at dusk. Bibliography: LeBlanc "Manuel de l'Amateur d'Estampes" Paris 1854 vol.1 pag.103 n ° 140 and 141. LeBlanc "Manuel de l'Amateur d'Estampes" Paris 1889 vol.3 pag.177 n ° 114 e 115. (Pesne) Robert-Dumesnil “Le Peintre-Graveur Francais” Paris 1838 Volume III p. 142 n ° 27 and 28. (Pesne) Wildenstein "Les Graveurs de Poussin au XVIIe siècle" Gazette des Beaux-Arts vol.XLVI Paris 1955 n ° 174 - 177. Measurements in mm: 478 x 621