Ontwerp voor een smeedijzeren buitenlantaarn met een vergulde hanenkop die een bladertak in de snavel houdt c. 1780

Jean-Louis Fontaine designed this wrought iron street lamp with a gilded rooster head holding a leafy branch in its beak. The restrained palette and delicate lines give the drawing a sense of lightness. Fontaine’s design uses a semiotic language typical of the late 18th century. Note how the rooster, a traditional symbol of vigilance and the announcement of light, is integrated into the structure of the lamp itself. The elaborate ironwork is not merely decorative. See how the cascading swags and the spiral motifs function as signs of opulence and refinement. These shapes were fashionable at the time, reflecting the era's aesthetic values and social codes. The drawing’s composition balances naturalistic elements, such as the rooster and foliage, with geometric forms in the ironwork, which creates tension between the organic and the structured. The design speaks to a society that values both nature and order, luxury and utility. The street lamp is a site where social and artistic meanings converge.