A fantastical animal fountain in the Bosquet du Labyrinthe, Château de Versailles

Based an engraving by Sebastien Leclerc, the present work depicts a fantastical fountain that was part of a large decorative scheme of ornamental sculpture installed in the park of the Château de Versailles in 1666-7. Known as the Bosquet du Labyrinthe, it was inspired by the fables written by M. de Benserade based on those of Aesop (see Simone Hogg, Manière de montrer les jardins de Versailles par Louis XIV, Paris, 1982). It was destroyed in 1775.