Framed and on the wall
Frame and rooms are illustrations of how the print could look; the description says what is included.
The Court of Francois Premier, Pair of Antique Costume Prints, circa 1882
£240
$320 · €290
Original print, not a reproduction.
Ships worldwide from the Netherlands, flat or rolled, insured and tracked. 14-day returns.
- Date
- circa 1882
- Sheet size
- 11.2 × 7.9 in (28.5 × 20 cm)
- Technique
- Woodcut
- Coloring
- Original hand color
- Condition
- Good. Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Marked handling soiling along the edges of both sheets. Scattered foxing in the margins of both sheets. Slight wear at the corners of one of the two sheets.
- Wardrobe
- Court & couture
- Era
- 1870 to 1900, Bustle
- Stock no.
- BG-13382-47
What the condition grades mean
- Excellent
- Bright and clean, with no faults worth mentioning.
- Very good
- Only light signs of age, such as faint toning.
- Good
- Normal signs of age for a sheet of this period: toning, some foxing, small marks or neat old repairs.
- Fair
- Clear faults such as staining, tears or repairs, priced to match.
Every fault we see is written in the condition note, and the whole sheet is shown uncropped in the photos.
This is a set of two 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: Lady of the Court of Francois Premier; Gentleman of the Court of Francois Premier. A lady of the court of Francois the First standing in a wide sleeved gown of patterned silk with a square neckline, a jeweled girdle falling to the hem and a close hood with its lappets turned back. A gentleman of the court of Francois the First in a short gown with broad fur revers over a slashed doublet, square toed shoes, a flat plumed cap and a sword, standing squarely with one hand on his hip.
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.
The court of Francois the First is where Italian taste entered French dress, and the square neck, the slashed oversleeve and the hood in this plate are the three features by which that change is usually recognized. The broad shouldered silhouette of this figure is the male counterpart to the square necked gown of the court ladies, and the two plates together give the complete Francois the First look. They are two 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 both sheets. Scattered foxing in the margins of both sheets. Slight wear at the corners of one of the two sheets.
This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.
