A detailed 18th-century engraving by Jean Louis Potrelle depicting Charles Le Brun, the influential Premier Peintre du Roi to Louis XIV.

This engraving by Jean Louis Potrelle depicts Charles Le Brun, the influential French painter and art theorist who served as the Premier Peintre du Roi under Louis XIV. Potrelle, a skilled engraver active in Paris during the late eighteenth century, captures the likeness of Le Brun with technical precision. The subject is shown in a three-quarter view, wearing the voluminous periwig characteristic of the late seventeenth-century French court. His expression is composed, reflecting the authority he held within the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture.

The print demonstrates the refined cross-hatching and stippling techniques common to the period, which allow for subtle gradations of tone across the skin and the fabric of the subject's attire. The lace cravat and the heavy drapery of his cloak are rendered with attention to texture, providing a contrast to the smooth, modelled features of the face. Below the image, the inscription identifies the sitter as the Premier Peintre du Roi, acknowledging his position as the primary architect of the visual culture of the Sun King's reign.

This work belongs to a tradition of portrait prints intended for collectors and scholars, documenting the figures who shaped European art history. Potrelle's execution maintains the formal clarity associated with the era, ensuring that the sitter's features remain the focus of the composition. The print is presented on paper with wide margins, typical of eighteenth-century publishing practices, and includes the original publication details at the base. It offers a clear view of the aesthetic standards of the time, where the engraver's craft was used to preserve the appearance of historical figures for posterity.