Carved Stall Heads, Vitteaux, Antique Chromolithograph, 1851

This is an original antique chromolithograph, printed in sepia, tan and buff, lettered "Fin du XVe Siècle, STALLES EN BOIS SCULPTÉ à l'Eglise de Vitteaux. (Côte d'Or.)". The plate shows five carved heads, each on its own rectangular block, set out two, one and two: a round faced man in a tall pointed cap; a grimacing face in a close hood with two knobs like horns and bared teeth; a plump cheeked figure in a turned up hat with a chin strap; a hooded head with a flap like an ear and a long nose; and a heavy featured profile under a studded hood. The carving is drawn with strong modeling and shadow, and each face has a distinct, often comic expression.

The caption translates as "end of the fifteenth century, stalls in carved wood in the church of Vitteaux (Côte d'Or)." The running head reads "AMEUBLEMENT RELIGIEUX". The credits read "Ed. de Goncourt del.", "Chromolith. Lemercier, r. de Seine 57, Paris." and "H. Moulin lith.", with "Séré direxit" beneath the caption.

Le Moyen Âge et la Renaissance was published in Paris in five volumes between 1848 and 1851. Paul Lacroix, who also wrote as the Bibliophile Jacob, edited the text, and Ferdinand Séré directed the illustrations, which is why his name and the word direxit stand beneath every plate. The work surveys the manners, crafts, sciences and arts of medieval and Renaissance Europe, and its chromolithographed plates record objects held around 1850 in churches, museums and private collections. This plate is from the fourth volume, dated 1851, and has a companion plate showing five further heads from the same stalls.

The heads have real character and make a lively pair with the companion plate.

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