Head of Medusa

Etienne Delaune

National Gallery of Art

This engraving shows an ornamental design with symmetrical features. At the top, two winged humanoid figures face each other, holding up a decorative canopy resembling a tent. Between them, under the tent, a vase containing three large flowers sits on a thin tiered surface. Below this surface is a smiling human head with snakes on top of it and wings emerging from either side. Twisting lines appear from the bottom of the face, and it is surrounded by swirling lines. At the bottom, the heads of two animals face one another; they appear to be dogs with large plumes of feathers emerging from their heads. These heads are surrounded by more curving lines and some small circles. The designs of this engraving appear in white, while the background of the ornament is black. Outside of the ornament, the background is blank, tan paper.