Recto: This is a design drawing for the sculptural base of the bust of Balthasar I Moretus (1574-1641). The design is divided by its central vertical axis, presenting the option of a spiraling cornucopia on the left side and double volute with vegetal decoration on the right side. There is a lightly sketched, round volute in black chalk beneath the oval volute set on a rectangular base on the right side of the drawing. The drawing is primarily executed in black chalk, with grey wash applied to add depth in areas (parts of the decorative flourishes, the pedestal of the bust, and the face of the bust). According to the Plantin-Moretus archives, a bust of Moretus was executed by Quellinus in 1642 (see: Van den Wijngaert, "De oude tekeningen van het museum Plantin-Moretus (1950), p. 14). However, the original bust and its sculptural setting no longer exists. There is a seventeenth-century plaster cast of a bust of Balthasar I in the collection of the Museum Plantin-Moretus (MPM.V.III.02.017).
Verso: second design for the sculptural setting of the bust of Balthasar I Moretus. Chest of bust summarily sketched above the voetstuk, with no head (trimmed sheet). The design is same on left as on right, with architectural elements surmounted by floral/vegetal motifs. Medallion with monogram of Balthasar Moretus at lower center, with a winged putti head above.
Emily Hirsch 2026
