Gravelot's sketch is preliminary for an engraved head-piece vignette in Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville's "Notice de l'Ancienne Gaule" (Paris : 1760). Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville (1697-1782) was Gravelot's older brother and a well-known geographer; the artist designed several illustrations and maps for his brother's treatises, including this important volume. Minerva is shown seated on a cloud with a shield, surrounded by four putti. The engraving after the drawing by Noel Le Mire appears above a dedication to His Serene Highness, the Duc de Chartres, later Louis-Philippe, duc d'Orleans (1725-1785).
Fourquevaux, Joseph de Beccarie de Pavie, marquis de, 1762-1841, former owner.
Bocher, Emmanuel, 1835-1919, former owner.
Olry-Roederer, Léon, 1869-1932, former owner.
Rosenbach, A. S. W. (Abraham Simon Wolf), 1876-1952, former owner.
Fleming, John F. (John Francis), 1910-1987, former owner.
Kraemer, Ruth S. "Drawings by Gravelot in the Morgan Library." Master drawings, XX (Spring 1982), p. 9, no. 11.