A precise seventeenth-century engraving by Claude Mellan, depicting the French polymath Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc using the artist's signature single-line technique.

This engraving by Claude Mellan depicts Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc, a French scholar and polymath. Mellan is recognised for his unique approach to the burin, where he eschewed traditional cross-hatching in favour of a single, continuous line that varies in thickness to create form and shadow. This technique results in a clean, sculptural quality that defines the subject with remarkable clarity.

Peiresc is shown in a bust-length portrait, wearing the traditional attire of a councillor to the Parlement of Aix. His expression is one of intellectual focus, with his gaze directed slightly away from the viewer. The lines of the engraving follow the contours of his face and beard, demonstrating Mellan's control over the copper plate. The background consists of horizontal lines, which provide a neutral setting that allows the figure to emerge from the surface of the paper. Below the portrait, the inscription provides biographical details, identifying the sitter and his dates of birth and death. This work is a fine example of seventeenth-century French portraiture, where the precision of the printmaker serves to document the likeness of a significant historical figure.

Mellan spent time in Rome, where he developed his singular style under the influence of Simon Vouet and the Italian masters. His work is noted for its economy of means, as he avoids the dense layering of lines common in the period. This portrait of Peiresc remains a primary reference for the appearance of the scholar, who was a central figure in the European Republic of Letters. The print captures both the physical features and the gravity of the subject, reflecting the scholarly culture of the era.