The Age of the Sun King, Set of Three Antique Costume Prints, circa 1882

This is a set of three original antique hand-colored wood engravings, sold together as one lot, from Augustin Challamel's La France et les Francais a travers les siecles, Paris, circa 1882. The sheets are, in order: Persons of Quality of 1665 and a Court Lady; The Sun King in Theater Costume and at the Carrousel; Gentleman in a Justaucorps and the Duke of Orleans. Persons of quality in the fashion of 1665 beside a lady of the court of 1668, the men in rhinegrave breeches loaded with ribbon loops and the lady in a stiff bodied gown with a looped overskirt. Louis the Fourteenth in theater costume as the Sun on the left and mounted at the carrousel on the right, both figures in plumed and jeweled dress with the sun emblem worked into the ornament. A gentleman in a justaucorps of 1671 beside the duke of Orleans, brother of the king, as he appeared in 1663, both in long coats with deep cuffs over knee breeches, taken from a period engraving.

This sheet was issued at Paris about 1882 by F. Roy, editeur, in Augustin Challamel's history of France and the French through the centuries, a work crowned by the Academie francaise. Challamel was also the author of a history of fashion in France, and the costume plates are the part of the book he cared about most. They are wood engravings, and the color has been applied by hand over the printed line, which is why the washes sit slightly across the engraved outline in places. This is a wood engraving finished by hand in watercolor. The coloring is bold rather than subtle, which suits the flat decorative drawing, and the strong yellows, reds and blues of the suite are what make these sheets work so well in a group on a wall rather than only as reference illustrations.

Sixteen sixty five is the height of the ribbon loop and the rhinegrave, the most extravagant moment in the whole history of men's dress, and this plate is the volume's record of it. The sun costume is the origin of the king's own byname and the carrousel of 1662 is the festival at which he adopted it, so this single sheet carries the making of the most famous royal image in European history. They are three original sheets sold together, and the set is never split. A matched group like this is easier to place than a single sheet, because it fills a wall on its own, and the common ground and plate size mean the frames can be identical.

Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Marked handling soiling along the edges of all three sheets. Scattered foxing in the margins of all three sheets. Loss or wear at the corners of all three sheets.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.