Plate 5: the wounded chief commander lies on the ground, while the battle goes on at right 1635 - 1660

This etching by Jacques Courtois captures the chaos of battle, with a wounded commander lying amidst the fray. But look closer—the fallen horse beside him is no mere casualty of war; it echoes a motif deeply rooted in the human psyche. The horse, once a symbol of power and nobility, is now prostrate. We see this mirrored in ancient Roman battle scenes, where the fallen horse symbolized defeat and the transience of glory. This imagery reflects humanity's collective anxiety about mortality. Consider how this symbol evolves: from the heroic steeds of classical art to the broken figures in modern anti-war art. Courtois taps into a primal fear, evoking not just the immediate horror of battle, but the broader existential dread that haunts us all. The image reminds us that even the mightiest can fall, a truth that reverberates through centuries of artistic expression.