François de Poilly the Elder

1622/23 Abbeville – 1693 Paris

François de Poilly trained for three years in Paris under the engraver, Pierre Daret, and subsequently joined his brother Nicolas for a while in working for the publisher, Pierre Mariette the Elder. A talented artist of great technical skill, he gained a reputation primarily for his high-quality reproductive engravings, producing over one hundred prints, most of which were portraits or devoted to religious themes. In 1649 Poilly went to Rome for seven years where he studied the Renaissance and High Baroque masters and produced numerous works after Raphael, the Carraccis, Guido Reni and other masters. After returning to Paris he was appointed engraver to the royal court and went into publishing as a sideline.