Valance
ca. 1810-20 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This furnishing fabric shows scenes from Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre's romantic novel, Paul et Virginie, published in Paris in 1788. The novel shows the influence of contemporary philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau's concept of 'The Noble Savage', which encouraged a return to nature, where humans would not be exposed to the corrupting influences of modern society.
Paul and Virginie are two children raised in relative seclusion on the island of Mauritius. Free from the constraints and troubles of their European contemporaries, the children grow to be happy and fulfilled until Virginie returns to France to secure the fortune of an ailing relative, leaving Paul desolate. On her return to the island, the ship carrying Virginie is wrecked on the coast during a hurricane. As the ship sinks, one of the sailors urges Virginie to dive into the sea and let him swim her to shore. However, Virginie's modesty precludes her from undressing in front of the sailor and so she chooses to drown instead.
Popular works of fiction like Bernardin de Saint Pierre's often inspired designs for printed cottons. The romantic sensibility of the late eighteenth century, as encapsulated in Paul et Virginie, with its doomed lovers and tragic ending, was still current in the early nineteenth century.
Paul and Virginie are two children raised in relative seclusion on the island of Mauritius. Free from the constraints and troubles of their European contemporaries, the children grow to be happy and fulfilled until Virginie returns to France to secure the fortune of an ailing relative, leaving Paul desolate. On her return to the island, the ship carrying Virginie is wrecked on the coast during a hurricane. As the ship sinks, one of the sailors urges Virginie to dive into the sea and let him swim her to shore. However, Virginie's modesty precludes her from undressing in front of the sailor and so she chooses to drown instead.
Popular works of fiction like Bernardin de Saint Pierre's often inspired designs for printed cottons. The romantic sensibility of the late eighteenth century, as encapsulated in Paul et Virginie, with its doomed lovers and tragic ending, was still current in the early nineteenth century.
Object details
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| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Roller-printed and block-printed plain weave cotton, lined with linen |
| Brief description | Valance of roller- and block-printed plaine weave cotton, possibly made in Nantes, France, about 1810-20 |
| Physical description | Valance of roller-printed cotton. In purple with five scenes from 'Paul et Virginie' arranged in ovals with the same scenes repeated below in staggered rows. The scenes, from left to right, are 'Enfance de Paul et Virginie' (childhoold of Paul and Virginia), 'Paul et Virginie égarés' (Paul and Virginia lost), 'Dominque retrouve Paul et Virginie' (Dominique finds Paul and Virginia), 'Mort de Virginie' (Death of Virginia), and 'Paul prie sur la tombe de Virginie' (Paul prays at the tomb of Virginia). The ovals are roller printed on a yellowish buff ground block-printed with floral decoration in red. The valance has a scalloped lower border, and is lined with a coarse and homespun diapered linen and is coarsely quilted. The original cotton tape has survived along the upper edge. |
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| Literary reference | Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, Jacques-Henri, Paul et Virginie , Paris, 1788 |
| Summary | This furnishing fabric shows scenes from Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre's romantic novel, Paul et Virginie, published in Paris in 1788. The novel shows the influence of contemporary philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau's concept of 'The Noble Savage', which encouraged a return to nature, where humans would not be exposed to the corrupting influences of modern society. Paul and Virginie are two children raised in relative seclusion on the island of Mauritius. Free from the constraints and troubles of their European contemporaries, the children grow to be happy and fulfilled until Virginie returns to France to secure the fortune of an ailing relative, leaving Paul desolate. On her return to the island, the ship carrying Virginie is wrecked on the coast during a hurricane. As the ship sinks, one of the sailors urges Virginie to dive into the sea and let him swim her to shore. However, Virginie's modesty precludes her from undressing in front of the sailor and so she chooses to drown instead. Popular works of fiction like Bernardin de Saint Pierre's often inspired designs for printed cottons. The romantic sensibility of the late eighteenth century, as encapsulated in Paul et Virginie, with its doomed lovers and tragic ending, was still current in the early nineteenth century. |
| Bibliographic reference | Sarah Grant, Toiles de Jouy. French Printed Cottons (London: V&A Publishing, 2010), pp. 88-9, no. 45. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.259-1982 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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