The Enlightenment of François I

This engraving is closely related to the fresco in the Gallery of François I at Chateau de Fontainebleau by Rosso Fiorentino and his workshop. The original preparatory drawing has presumably not survived. Another, probably slightly later version of the composition was etched by Antonio Fantuzzi (see Jenkins AF 24). Furthermore, there is a copy engraved by the Venetian publisher and engraver Domenico Zenoi, which clearly used the present print by Boyvin as a model.
King François I, dressed as Caesar with the laurel wreath on his head, a raised sword in his hand left hand and a book as a symbol of learning under his right arm, walks the path of righteousness (marked BONI) and is about to enter the light-filled Temple of Zeus to take his place amongst the Gods. In the foreground, a chaotic group of blindfolded figures representing ignorance and lust is stumbling helplessly towards Sin and Evil (marked MALI). These figures seem to walk or rest on clouds, presumably meant to signify the lack of solid ground beneath them.
Boyvin put a strong emphasis on the symbolic contrast between the light streaming from the temple door and the darkness surrounding the figures in the foreground, an aspect completely absent from Fantuzzi's version of the scene.