Louis XII and Anne of Brittany at Court, Antique Chromolithograph, 1882

Louis XII, Anne of Brittany and their court, an original antique chromolithograph from Paul Lacroix's Louis XII et Anne de Bretagne, published in Paris by Georges Hurtrel in 1882. The plate reproduces a whole illuminated manuscript page in facsimile: Louis XII and Anne of Brittany seated with their ladies under a green and gold canopy, a courtier kneeling before them and a company of armored men at arms in the foreground. Six lines of gothic script open with a flowered initial D, and the page is framed on all four sides by a border of acanthus, flowers and strawberries with a winged dragon and two grotesque beasts on a gold ground.

The plate comes from Louis XII et Anne de Bretagne, Chronique de l'Histoire de France, by Paul Lacroix, the prolific historian who wrote as the Bibliophile Jacob, published in Paris in 1882 by Georges Hurtrel, artiste-editeur, of 35 rue d'Assas. The title page announces fourteen chromolithographs, fifteen large plates outside the text and about two hundred drawings in the text, all taken from originals of the period, and the work was produced under Hurtrel's own direction. The plate is a chromolithograph, printed in many colors with gold by the Imprimerie Lemercier et Cie, one of the leading lithographic printers of Paris, whose imprint appears at the lower right. The lithographer, A. Benard, signs at the lower left. The color is printed, not applied by hand.

Plates like this brought the illuminated manuscripts and treasures of the royal library within reach of ordinary readers for the first time, and they remain among the most vivid images of the court of Louis XII available to collectors. Framed in a gilt or dark wood frame it makes a striking single picture, and it also groups well with other plates from the same book.

Even age toning. Handling soiling along the bottom, right and top edges. Scattered light foxing in the margin. All four corners complete.

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