Printed emblematic fan, with captions in Spanish. [France? ca. 1800-1810].
Hand-colored engraved and stipple-engraved folding paper fan, printed on recto of a single sheet, backed in plain paper, mounted on original wooden sticks, the guards with narrow fillets of decorative bone near rivet, the rivet pins with decorative glass inserts; the open fan leaf measuring approx. 169 x 450 mm., total fan height (including mount) 255 mm. The allegorical scene colored in watercolor and gouache; stencilled decorative border with acanthuses at top, printed in gold, a gold border at top of verso. Condition: slight wear along a few folds. ***
A colorful woman’s fan, probably produced in France for the Spanish market, on the theme of choosing a lover or partner.
The engraving shows, at the center of a clearing in a wood, a couple in ancient dress, the man (a god?) in a helmet, armor and cloak, the woman with a yellow halo bearing the caption, “La inocencia guiada de la sabiduria para elergir un corazon” (Innocence guided by wisdom to choose a heart). Flanking the couple are ten hearts (some flaming), five on each side, each containing an emblematic figure with a one-word caption designating the pictured character trait. Those on the left are undesirable qualities (e.g., a butterfly, labeled Inconstancia), and those on the right, to which the armored gentleman points, are positive (a dog on a leash, labeled Fidelidad). Item #4244
Price: $1,800.00