Enigmes Joyeuses pour les Bons Esprits, Plate 5

Fifth plate of a group of 9 plates with small domestic scenes, engraved by Jan van Haelbeeck, which were either were made for, or reused by Jean Leclerc around 1615 in the sonnet series ‘Enigmes Joyeuses pour les Bons Esprits’, in which they were each published with a sonnet that hinted at the double meaning of the activities. In this plate, a working-class woman, weaves a textile inside a dark room with a small window. She reclines over the loom, while weaving the cloth, and a basket with rolls of wool is placed underneath the loom. The plate accompanies one of the sonnets of the Enigmes, which tells how someone saw a young girl leave her "pleasant" job (weaving) to secretly play games without leaving a trace. The games played by the woman are described in a double, slightly erotic meaning, which helps explain why most copies of the series, although very popular and influential in their day, have been lost.

Credit: Mary Oenslager Fund, 2016