Charles Melchior Descourtis

Charles Melchior Descourtis was an engraver and printmaker active during the mid to late 18th century, with documented production spanning the years 1753 to 1785. His known body of work largely consists of detailed topographic views and portrait prints.

The subjects addressed by Descourtis vary between formal figures, such as the commissioned work Frederica Sophia Wilhelmina of Prussia, Princess of Orange Nassau, and extensive landscape documentation. His topographical prints focus heavily on European scenery, providing specific geographic representations in works such as Vue de Schadau sur le Lac de Thun, the large vista Vue generale des Alpes et Glaciers, and the seasonal study Vue du Schild-Wald-Bach, Prise Enhiver.

Fifteen of Charles Melchior Descourtis’s prints are currently represented in major institutional holdings. His work is preserved in prominent American collections, including the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The detailed execution of these historical images ensures continued interest in Descourtis's documentation of 18th-century life and landscape. The artist’s output, frequently now in the public domain, is available to researchers and collectors who seek high-quality prints of this period.