FAN — LOVE CHOICESBiblio.com
Printed emblematic fan with captions in Spanish
1810Best.-Nr. 4244France 1810. Hand-colored and color-printed 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; stenciled gold-printed acanthus border at top a gold border at top of otherwise blank verso. 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 classical dress the male figure representing wisdom in a helmet armor and cloak the woman with a yellow halo innocence 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 Wisdom is pointing are positive e.g. a dog on a leash labeled Fidelidad. Fans were often accessories in scenes of courting or flirtation in literature the theater and real life. This was reflected in popular themes of fan designs themselves. An English fan from the same period differently presented but bearing a similar message was featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's 2026 “Fanmania” exhibit Met object no. 38.91.23. It shows “an array of potential suitors cast as contrasting types. In addition to offering amusement the fan might have provided a degree of moralizing instruction to young women on behaviors to either avoid or embrace in a prospective beau” exhibit label. unknown
Musinsky Rare Books, Inc. · Vereinigte Staaten1.800,00 $≈ 1.608,15 €
