Vues De Paris
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket - cloth/board in good condition
Pages: Good
Condition remarks: **FRENCH TEXT ONLY**
Long before the camera captured Paris in its eternal light, the engraver's burin did — and no hand was more precise or more celebrated than that of Israël Silvestre. Vues de Paris presents a magnificent collection of the seventeenth-century French master's engravings, offering an unparalleled visual chronicle of Paris as it appeared during the reign of Louis XIV — its grand palaces, bustling quays, sweeping gardens, and labyrinthine streets rendered with extraordinary precision and grace. With an introduction and commentaries by Jean-Pierre Babelon, the volume situates each image within its rich historical and architectural context, transforming a stunning visual record into an indispensable document of urban history. Silvestre, draughtsman to the King and one of the most prolific topographical artists of his era, illustrates a Paris now largely vanished — a city on the cusp of its transformation into the capital of European culture and power. Babelon's scholarly yet accessible commentary draws out the political, social, and aesthetic dimensions of each view, revealing how these images served not merely as records but as instruments of royal prestige and civic pride. For historians, art lovers, and admirers of the City of Light alike, this volume raises an irresistible question: how much of the Paris we imagine today was first conjured in the mind of Israël Silvestre?
Author: Israël Silvestre
Format: Hardback
Published: 1977, Berger-Levrault
Genre: Photography
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket - cloth/board in good condition
Pages: Good
Condition remarks: **FRENCH TEXT ONLY**
Long before the camera captured Paris in its eternal light, the engraver's burin did — and no hand was more precise or more celebrated than that of Israël Silvestre. Vues de Paris presents a magnificent collection of the seventeenth-century French master's engravings, offering an unparalleled visual chronicle of Paris as it appeared during the reign of Louis XIV — its grand palaces, bustling quays, sweeping gardens, and labyrinthine streets rendered with extraordinary precision and grace. With an introduction and commentaries by Jean-Pierre Babelon, the volume situates each image within its rich historical and architectural context, transforming a stunning visual record into an indispensable document of urban history. Silvestre, draughtsman to the King and one of the most prolific topographical artists of his era, illustrates a Paris now largely vanished — a city on the cusp of its transformation into the capital of European culture and power. Babelon's scholarly yet accessible commentary draws out the political, social, and aesthetic dimensions of each view, revealing how these images served not merely as records but as instruments of royal prestige and civic pride. For historians, art lovers, and admirers of the City of Light alike, this volume raises an irresistible question: how much of the Paris we imagine today was first conjured in the mind of Israël Silvestre?