[Paris?] : [François Simon Giroux?], [approximately 1825?]
Physical Description:
1 écran-panorama ; screen 20 x 22 cm, height 35 cm inclusive of wooden handle
Holdings:
Rare Books and ManuscriptsFolio A 2016 9bYale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Copyright Not Evaluated
Classification:
Prints
Notes:
"[The] 'panorama handscreen' or 'mechanical screen fan' ... was a French invention that appeared in the 1820s, and was sold at shops specializing in optical toys, jewelry, paintings, and fashionable furniture. One of the most famous was Giroux near the Palais-Royal ... Some surviving examples of the panorama handscreen bear the label of Giroux. It identifies the product as écran-panorma and mentions that it has been patented ..."--Huhtamo."The écran-panorama has an illustrated cardboard frame with a cutout window, attached to an elegantly turned wooden or ivory handle. A roll of translucent pictures, enclosed in cylindrical containers on both sides of the window, is operated by two knobs. Various designs and subjects are known, which points to a significant volume of production ..."--Huhtamo.Huhtamo, E. Illusions in motion, pages 48-49Écran-panorama (or panorama handscreen) depicting scenes of Morfontaine, France. The nine locations depicted are numerically keyed to an index at the beginning. The panoramic strip consists of hand-colored etchings, affixed end-to-end. The decorative screen shows similar rural scenery, including a large rock inscribed: "Sa masse indestructible a fatigué le temps. Delille" (presumably, a rendering of the rock so inscribed at La Garenne Lemot).
Contents:
1. Le chateau vu du Petit Parc -- 2. Maison du garde générale -- 3. La Tour Dubos -- 4. La cabanne des pecheurs -- 5. La maison et l'étang Vallière -- 6. La ferme -- 7. Le pont de bois -- 8. Maison du garde des eaux -- 9. Le grand lac, vu de l'ile Moltan.