La Cholere - Jacob Gole

A striking mezzotint by Jacob Gole depicting the personification of Anger, part of a series on the Seven Deadly Sins.

This mezzotint by Jacob Gole, titled La Cholere, represents the personification of Anger. It belongs to a series depicting the Seven Deadly Sins, a common theme in European printmaking during the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Gole, a Dutch engraver and publisher active in Amsterdam, utilised the mezzotint technique to achieve the soft, tonal transitions visible in the subject's face and the surrounding shadows.

The figure is depicted within a circular frame, wearing a hooded garment with a knife tucked into the fabric. The expression is one of intense, distorted fury, with wide eyes and a grimacing mouth. A curved blade is held in the foreground, reinforcing the aggressive nature of the character. A small placard attached to the figure's clothing bears the inscription Le Pere General, adding a layer of satirical or polemical commentary to the image. Below the circular portrait, a French verse describes the figure's violent zeal against Huguenots, situating the work within the specific religious and political tensions of the era.

Technically, the print demonstrates Gole's skill in managing the mezzotint process, which involves roughening a copper plate to create dark areas and scraping it to produce lighter tones. This method allows for a dramatic play of light and shadow, which Gole employs here to heighten the grotesque quality of the subject. The composition is compact and focused, drawing the viewer's attention directly to the distorted features of the personification. As a piece of historical printmaking, it offers insight into the visual language of moral allegory and the technical capabilities of Dutch printmakers of the period.