This last Gillot 404 testing sketch is inspired by an original drawing by the French artist Maxime Lalanne (1827-1886). The drawing is included in the book La Hollande à vol d’oiseau (A bird’s-eye view of The Netherlands) with text by Henry Havard and edited by A. Quantin in Paris, 1882. The sketch shows the old city gate of Haarlem.
Charles D. Maginnis defines the original Lalanne drawing in his book Pen drawing, an illustrated treatise as «an excellent example of the Economy of Means carried to its extreme. Not a stroke could be spared, so direct and simple is it, and yet it is so complete and homogeneous that nothing could be added to make it more so.»