#mid 1700s

Philippe Mercier (1689-1760)
“A Girl Holding a Cat” (c. 1750)
Oil on canvas
Rococo
Located in the National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh, Scotland

Luis Meléndez (1716-1780)
“Still Life with Oranges, Jars, and Boxes of Sweets” (c. 1760)
Oil on canvas
Located in the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas, United States

A Hymn to the Moon
(Written in an Arbour)

1758′ 

Thou silver deity of secret night,
   Direct my footsteps through the woodland shade;
Thou conscious witness of unknown delight,
   The Lover’s guardian, and the Muse’s aid!

By thy pale beams I solitary rove,
   To thee my tender grief confide;
Serenely sweet you gild the silent grove,
   My friend, my goddess, and my guide.

E'en thee, fair queen, from thy amazing height,
   The charms of young Endymion drew;
Veil’d with the mantle of concealing night;
   With all thy greatness and thy coldness too.

- Lady Mary Wortley Montagu

(1689-1762)