Peasants of Paris and Limoges with Women of Olona and Fete de Buch, 1842

This original antique lithograph, colored by hand, comes from the Galleria Universale di Tutti i Popoli del Mondo (Venice, Giuseppe Antonelli, 1842) and shows French country dress in two panels. In the upper image a woman in a white cap, pink kerchief, green jacket, white apron and orange red striped skirt leads a donkey with a pack basket; beside her a man in a broad hat, brown coat, blue waistcoat, yellow breeches and blue stockings carries a flask and a staff with a bundle on his back, and a woman seen from behind wears a blue bonnet, an olive bodice and a pink skirt with zigzag trim, a basket of greens on her arm. In the lower image an older woman in a white cap, fur collar and purple jacket stands at left, and two young women face each other at right: one in a tall white headdress and striped apron holds a nest of eggs, the other wears a lace veil, a pink jacket, a checked shawl and a green skirt.

The top margin is lettered "Tom IV" at left, "FRANCIA" in the center and "Tav 26" at right. The upper captions read "Contadina d'intorno a Parigi" (Peasant woman from around Paris) and "Contadini di Limoges" (Peasants of Limoges). The lower captions read "Donna di Olona" (Woman of Olona) and "Contadine di Fete de Buch" (Peasant women of Fete de Buch), with the place names spelled as printed.

Limoges is the chief town of the Limousin in central France. The tall white caps, aprons and shawls show how rural dress varied from one district of France to another.

Seven figures in bright, varied colors make this a lively costume plate for a kitchen, a hallway or a group of French subjects.

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