300 
of Caricature 
and 
Grotefque 
CHAPTER 
XVIII. 
CALLOT AND ms  ROMANTIC H1sToRY.-ms 
"cAP1ucI," AND OTHER BURLESQUE woluas.-THE "BALL!" AND 
      
OF DELLA BELLA.-RQMAIN DE HOOGHE. 
THE art of engraving on copper, although it had made rapid advances 
during the fixteenth century, was [till very far from perfection ; but 
the clofe of that century witnelfed the birth of a man who was deliined 
not only to give a new charaeter to this art, but alfo to bring in a new 
Ptyle of caricature and burlefque. This was the celebrated Jacques Callot, 
a native of Lorraine, and defcended from a noble Burgundian family. 
His father, Jean Callot, held the office of herald of Lorraine. Jacques 
was born in the year 1592,46 at Nancy, and appears to have been (lefiined 
for the church, with a view to which his early education was regulated. 
But the early life of Jacques Callot prefents a romantic epifode in the 
hiftory of art afpirations. While yet hardly more than an infant, he 
ieized every opportunity of neglecting more ferious ftudies to praiftife 
drawing, and he difplayed efpecially a very precocious tafte for fatire, 
for his artiitic talent was Ihown principally in caricaturing all the 
people he knew. His father, and apparently all his relatives, difapproved 
of his love for drawing, and did what they could to difcourage it ; but in 
vain, for he {till found means of indulging it. Claude Henriet, the 
painter to the court of Lorraine, gave him leH'0ns, and his fon, Ilrael 
Henriet, formed for him a boy's friendfhip. He alfo learnt the elements 
 This is the date fixed hy Meaume, in his excellent work on Callot, entitled 
" Recherches sur la Vie ct les Ouvmgcs de Jacques Callot," 2 tom. 8vo., 1860.