Jean-Baptiste Vanmour's Album "Recueil de cent estampes représentant différentes nations du Levant"
The engravings featured in this collection are taken from the work entitled Recueil de cent estampes représentant différentes nations du Levant (Collection of One Hundred Prints Representing Different Nations of the Levant), published in Paris in 1714 and widely regarded as the most important visual source of the 'Turquerie' (Turkish fashion) movement in Europe. Commissioned by the French ambassador Marquis de Ferriol and painted by the artist Jean-Baptiste Vanmour in Istanbul, these works serve as the most detailed visual memory documenting Ottoman society of the period, ranging from palace dignitaries to street vendors.
Since color printing technology did not exist at the time, these engravings were printed in black and white and subsequently hand-colored by artists in workshops. Consequently, the variations in color and tone observed across copies of the same work in different libraries are a natural result of the artwork's original production process.
Based on Jean-Baptiste Vanmour's original paintings, this work was engraved onto metal plates and printed by master engravers of the era, including Philippe Simonneau, Gérard Scotin (the elder) and Gérard Scotin (the younger), Claude Du Bosc, Jean-Baptiste Haussard, Charles-Nicolas Cochin, Bernard Baron, Jacques de Franssières, and Pierre de Rochefort.
Since color printing technology did not exist at the time, these engravings were printed in black and white and subsequently hand-colored by artists in workshops. Consequently, the variations in color and tone observed across copies of the same work in different libraries are a natural result of the artwork's original production process.
Based on Jean-Baptiste Vanmour's original paintings, this work was engraved onto metal plates and printed by master engravers of the era, including Philippe Simonneau, Gérard Scotin (the elder) and Gérard Scotin (the younger), Claude Du Bosc, Jean-Baptiste Haussard, Charles-Nicolas Cochin, Bernard Baron, Jacques de Franssières, and Pierre de Rochefort.