Essai sur la physiognomonie : destiné a faire connoître l'homme & à le faire aimer
Lavater's 1781 French treatise on physiognomy, printed at The Hague by Jaques Van Karnebeek, offers a theory that character can be read from facial features, aimed at a general reader wanting to understand and like people. The pictures are engraved profile heads in plain outline, mostly set in ovals, showing the head turned to the left and the hair and collar rendered in fine hatching, useful for a designer seeking classical-style portrait busts, silhouettes, or oval vignette framing.
