[Samplebook of textile patterns]
Language: fre
Number of pages: 444
Subjects: Catalogs; Textile fabrics; Early works to 1800; Textile printing; Manufacture de M. Viard Veuve Lemaître
Notes: Title supplied by cataloger.

A samplebook of dark blue paper with 866 textile patterns, arranged two to the page. Most are stenciled(?) in white or light blue, but the last 61 are actual swatches. The patterns are numbered from 1 to [1036], with some numbers omitted. In most of the slips the number is resist-printed along with the pattern. Occasional samples have cut-outs.

Second front free endpaper has contemporary MS entries of pattern numbers, some with commentary.

Third front free endpaper inscribed: Carte de la manuf.re de M.r Viard V.ve Lemaitre de Bolbec, ayant son magasin rue du gros horloge au coin de la rue St. Jean à Rouen. This is followed by a date in another hand: 17 octobre 1618.

The manufacturers of Bolbec invented a wax resist process for printing blue and white cloth around 1709 (see www.ot-bolbec.fr, 2/19/04), and most of the town was destroyed by fire in 1765. Thus the samplebook may have been assembled between these dates.

Binding: vellum waste, written in French.