| Original Vintage Posters for Absinthe and other Belle Epoque Spirits & Liquors |
The height of the absinthe boom in the late 19th century, coincided with the rise of the large lithographic advertising
poster as a powerful commercial and artistic medium - pioneered by the work of Jules Chéret. Some of the greatest poster artists
of the period - Cappiello, Privat-Livemont, Tamagno - created famous images to advertise the absinthe grand marques. Fortunately,
the greatest of them all, Toulouse Lautrec, never produced an absinthe-specific poster, thus thoughtfully sparing future generations
of absinthiana collectors the necessity of a potentially financially ruinous purchase....
We search all over the world, but especially from original sources in France and Switzerland for these posters. Because of their
extreme rarity and the ever-growing demand from collectors and investors, anything we find usually sells very quickly. Please
contact us to put your name on our waiting list if you're interested in a specific poster.
Scroll down this page for more details on the lithographic printing technique used for these posters, and some notes on scarcity
and collectability.
All the posters listed here are authentic Belle Epoque era vintage originals. To buy finely printed reproduction absinthe posters,
click here.
Price codes for vintage posters:
A: $1000 - $2999
B: $3000 - $6999
C: $7000 - $11999
D: $12000 - $17999
E: $18000 - $24999
F: $25000 - $35000
poster as a powerful commercial and artistic medium - pioneered by the work of Jules Chéret. Some of the greatest poster artists
of the period - Cappiello, Privat-Livemont, Tamagno - created famous images to advertise the absinthe grand marques. Fortunately,
the greatest of them all, Toulouse Lautrec, never produced an absinthe-specific poster, thus thoughtfully sparing future generations
of absinthiana collectors the necessity of a potentially financially ruinous purchase....
We search all over the world, but especially from original sources in France and Switzerland for these posters. Because of their
extreme rarity and the ever-growing demand from collectors and investors, anything we find usually sells very quickly. Please
contact us to put your name on our waiting list if you're interested in a specific poster.
Scroll down this page for more details on the lithographic printing technique used for these posters, and some notes on scarcity
and collectability.
All the posters listed here are authentic Belle Epoque era vintage originals. To buy finely printed reproduction absinthe posters,
click here.
Price codes for vintage posters:
A: $1000 - $2999
B: $3000 - $6999
C: $7000 - $11999
D: $12000 - $17999
E: $18000 - $24999
F: $25000 - $35000
A rare opportunity to buy one of the greatest Belle Epoque posters.
This iconic 1896 image for Absinthe Robette is regarded as Privat-
Livemont’s masterpiece, and has always fetched a higher price than
any of his other posters. It was recognized as an exceptional design
from the word go, and was already reproduced in 1898, two years
after the original printing, in a reduced small-format version for
collectors as part of a series called Maitres de l’Affiche (Masters of the
Poster). The full size original printing as shown here measures an
imposing 112cm x 84 cm.
It’s today one of the most widely reproduced of all Art Nouveau
images. The original is the most sought after and desirable of all
absinthe posters and has consistently appreciated substantially in
value, year after year. This is one the bluest of blue chips from both an
artistic and an investment point of view.
This iconic 1896 image for Absinthe Robette is regarded as Privat-
Livemont’s masterpiece, and has always fetched a higher price than
any of his other posters. It was recognized as an exceptional design
from the word go, and was already reproduced in 1898, two years
after the original printing, in a reduced small-format version for
collectors as part of a series called Maitres de l’Affiche (Masters of the
Poster). The full size original printing as shown here measures an
imposing 112cm x 84 cm.
It’s today one of the most widely reproduced of all Art Nouveau
images. The original is the most sought after and desirable of all
absinthe posters and has consistently appreciated substantially in
value, year after year. This is one the bluest of blue chips from both an
artistic and an investment point of view.
Description: 1896 Absinthe Robette by Privat-Livemont, original
vintage lithographic poster.
Condition: Outstanding A+ condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals if you'd like us to contact you if we find
another copy of this poster.
vintage lithographic poster.
Condition: Outstanding A+ condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals if you'd like us to contact you if we find
another copy of this poster.
Description: Champagne Miller-Caqué & Fils by Leo Hinore, original vintage
lithographic poster.
Condition: Very good condition, newly linen-mounted, fresh colors.
Price code: A
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to place an order.
lithographic poster.
Condition: Very good condition, newly linen-mounted, fresh colors.
Price code: A
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to place an order.
An extremely rare and important poster for this now forgotten champagne house
based at Mareuil-sur-Ay. Printed by Lithographie Parisienne in Paris.
Of great interest both to champagne and to polar exploration specialists. A
remarkable and striking image.
0.71 metre x 0.53 metre.
Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.
based at Mareuil-sur-Ay. Printed by Lithographie Parisienne in Paris.
Of great interest both to champagne and to polar exploration specialists. A
remarkable and striking image.
0.71 metre x 0.53 metre.
Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.
Description: 1901 Absinthe Ducros by Cappiello, original vintage
lithographic poster.
Condition: Very good condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
Price: SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to put
your name on the waiting list for a future copy.
lithographic poster.
Condition: Very good condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
Price: SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to put
your name on the waiting list for a future copy.
An extremely rare original of this often reproduced poster, designed by
Leonetto Cappiello. Only one similar example has appeared on
auction in the last 25 years. A cache of three copies were discovered
last year, of which this one is the best preserved. A chance to buy a
wonderful and vibrant image, by one of the acknowledged masters of
the poster, at a very competitive price.
1.39 metre x 0.99 metre.
Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.
Leonetto Cappiello. Only one similar example has appeared on
auction in the last 25 years. A cache of three copies were discovered
last year, of which this one is the best preserved. A chance to buy a
wonderful and vibrant image, by one of the acknowledged masters of
the poster, at a very competitive price.
1.39 metre x 0.99 metre.
Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.
The rarest and most sought after of the three absinthe posters
designed by Leonetto Cappiello, regarded as the father of
modern advertising. No example of this poster has appeared on
auction since (at least) the early 1980's. A stunning showpiece.
Oversized format: 2 metres x 3.15 metres.
designed by Leonetto Cappiello, regarded as the father of
modern advertising. No example of this poster has appeared on
auction since (at least) the early 1980's. A stunning showpiece.
Oversized format: 2 metres x 3.15 metres.
Description: 1896 Absinthe J. Edouard Pernot by Cappiello,
original vintage lithographic poster.
Condition: Very good A- condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
Price: SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to
put your name on the waiting list for a future copy.
original vintage lithographic poster.
Condition: Very good A- condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
Price: SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to
put your name on the waiting list for a future copy.
Collecting Vintage Belle Epoque Posters
The height of the absinthe boom in the late 19th century, coincided with the rise of the large lithographic advertising poster as
an important commercial and artistic medium.
The basic techniques for lithographic printing were first developed in the late eighteenth century, but were initially unsuited to
large format poster production. Such posters as there were, were usually quite small and produced either by woodblock or
simple metal engraving. Colour was rarely used, and there was little attempt to integrate text and illustrations. From the 1830
though a series of technical advances made stone lithography an increasingly attractive technique, both because of the subtle
and multi-dimensional colours that could be achieved, and because of the freedom it afforded the artist, who could draw
directly on the polished stone surface. The father of the modern poster was Jules Cheret, who in the late 19th century took the
technique to technical and artistic heights previously unimagined, producing vivid, fully integrated advertising posters in
extremely large formats, usually printed in multiple passes from three carefully aligned stones, one for each of the three
primary colours.
Stone lithography was based on the use of large limestone blocks, which were sanded to a smooth perfectly flat surface. On to
this the artist drew his design, using a grease crayon, which was absorbed by the porous surface of the limestone. Once
transferred to the printing press, the surface of the stone was moistened with water - those areas not covered with the grease
crayon soaked up the water and became wet, while the greasy lines of the drawing itself were water-repellent, and remained
dry. Then an oil-based ink was applied with a roller - the greasy parts of the stone picked up the ink, the wet parts didn't. Finally
damp paper was carefully placed on top of the ink covered stone, and even pressure applied by running the whole thing
through a specially designed press. The entire process was then repeated for the second primary colour, and then for the third.
The combination of the three passes - red, blue, yellow - produced, in the hand of a master craftsman, a finished print with
colours both subtle and intense, and shadings of almost infinite variety. In many respects the quality of colour printing achieved
by Cheret and the other great masters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries has never been equalled or surpassed since.
Although there are still artists working in this medium, some of the original techniques have been lost, and printing presses to
handle the huge stone blocks are no longer manufactured – one of the reasons that, fortunately, fakes or forgeries are not
generally a problem in this field.
The Absinthe Robette poster shown above, with its wonderfully subtle and translucent shades of green, is technically speaking,
a particularly superlative example of this lithographic printing process.
Cheret's innovation took Paris, then France and then the world by storm. Never before had words and graphics been so tightly
and seamlessly integrated, and never before had such powerful and effective images been so cheap to produce. These
posters had ushered in the age of modern advertising.
Building on Cheret's work, a handful of artists adopted the medium and elevated the advertising poster to fine art. The pioneer,
in 1891, was Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. His first poster, Moulin Rouge, is a masterpiece and was recognised as such within two
decades of its initial production. Today it's one of the most sought after and valuable of all posters. In 1894, Alphonse Mucha, a
Czech artist working in Paris, ushered in the era of Art Nouveau poster design, with a sinuous and haunting style influenced by
the Pre-Raphaelites, the Arts and Crafts Movement, and the then vogue for Orientalism. This style was to dominate the Parisian
scene for at least the next decade, and inspire several worthy successors to Mucha, chief amongst them the Belgian posterist
Henri Privat-Livemont.
Within a few years of Cheret's first production, the most striking advertising posters were already being collected as art objects
in their own right, and in the 1890's the famous "Maitres de l'Affiche" series provided small format versions of the most famous
designs specifically for the collector market. Notwithstanding this however, the overwhelming majority of posters were
destroyed in actual use - mounted on walls or sidings and then ripped away when the next new image became available.
While the posters were originally produced in editions that usually numbered in the hundreds or even thousands, very few
survive in their original state. Those that survive in good condition today, usually originate from printer’s archives discovered
many decades later.
Price wise, the value of a Belle Epoque poster depends on five things: the reputation of the artist, the quality of the design, the
subject matter, the scarcity of the poster, and the condition.
Reputation:
Toulouse Lautrec stands head and shoulders above all other Belle Epoque poster artists in terms of value. Pretty much any
original large format Lautrec poster is worth upwards of $40000, and his rarest posters have fetched over a million dollars on
auction. Luckily he never produced an absinthe poster! Below this comes a group of 5 artists, generally regarded as the next
most significant: Cheret, Mucha, Steinlen, Privat-Livemont, and Cappiello. Privat-Livemont was Belgian, the rest all French.
Absinthe Robette, which he completed in 1896, was Privat-Livemont’s only absinthe poster, but there are 3 wonderful absinthe
posters by Cappiello, very different from the Livemont, but also using beautiful women to sell the product.
Quality of Design:
Posters are visual objects, and a great design will always be keenly sought after, even if the artist is a minor one (or even
anonymous). A good example is the famous poster for Absinthe Blanqui by "Nover" - a pseudonym for an unknown in-house
artist working for the Revon printing works.
Subject Matter:
Broadly speaking, the most popular collecting fields are Food & Drink, Women, Opera and Transport. Absinthe is obviously a
sub-category within Food & Drink, but it’s by far the most difficult field to collect. There are around 30 serious poster dealers
worldwide, who collectively have thousands of posters for sale – and as one can easily verify by searching, generally at any one
time there is not a single large format absinthe poster of any kind available ex stock from any of them. When they do
occasionally come up, they are immediately snapped up by one of the many serious collectors. The only category equivalently
sought after are original Verdi and Puccini opera posters, which one also simply never sees.
Scarcity:
Very few of these posters survive in acceptable condition. In many cases only a few dozen of each image exist, and in the case
of the rarest posters - a category that includes many of the greatest absinthe posters - surviving copies might be numbered on
the fingers of one hand.
Condition:
Belle Epoque posters generally don’t exist in the kind of “mint” condition you might expect from a limited edition art print – they
were printed for purely commercial purposes, on cheap paper, and were never originally intended for collectors. Almost all have
folds (because of their large size they were folded in quarters or eighths for storage). Often, as you’d expect, there is some
damage to the image, or paper loss, where the fold lines intersect. Usually this is expertly retouched when the poster is linen-
mounted. Other very common faults are fading (sometimes called “light-staining” ) and damage to the edges of the paper,
which tends to crumble unless it’s been mounted.
Collectors usually refer to A, B or C condition. “A” condition posters are unfaded, with only the faintest fold lines and no
restoration or paper replacement. “B” condition posters have more obvious fold lines, and some minor retouching. “C”
condition posters have extensive retouching and/or paper replacement and/or some degree of fading.
Which condition is acceptable depends on the scarcity of the poster. A collector might insist on the finest possible condition for
a relatively common poster, while being quite happy to accept a C condition example of one known to exist in only a handful of
copies.
The height of the absinthe boom in the late 19th century, coincided with the rise of the large lithographic advertising poster as
an important commercial and artistic medium.
The basic techniques for lithographic printing were first developed in the late eighteenth century, but were initially unsuited to
large format poster production. Such posters as there were, were usually quite small and produced either by woodblock or
simple metal engraving. Colour was rarely used, and there was little attempt to integrate text and illustrations. From the 1830
though a series of technical advances made stone lithography an increasingly attractive technique, both because of the subtle
and multi-dimensional colours that could be achieved, and because of the freedom it afforded the artist, who could draw
directly on the polished stone surface. The father of the modern poster was Jules Cheret, who in the late 19th century took the
technique to technical and artistic heights previously unimagined, producing vivid, fully integrated advertising posters in
extremely large formats, usually printed in multiple passes from three carefully aligned stones, one for each of the three
primary colours.
Stone lithography was based on the use of large limestone blocks, which were sanded to a smooth perfectly flat surface. On to
this the artist drew his design, using a grease crayon, which was absorbed by the porous surface of the limestone. Once
transferred to the printing press, the surface of the stone was moistened with water - those areas not covered with the grease
crayon soaked up the water and became wet, while the greasy lines of the drawing itself were water-repellent, and remained
dry. Then an oil-based ink was applied with a roller - the greasy parts of the stone picked up the ink, the wet parts didn't. Finally
damp paper was carefully placed on top of the ink covered stone, and even pressure applied by running the whole thing
through a specially designed press. The entire process was then repeated for the second primary colour, and then for the third.
The combination of the three passes - red, blue, yellow - produced, in the hand of a master craftsman, a finished print with
colours both subtle and intense, and shadings of almost infinite variety. In many respects the quality of colour printing achieved
by Cheret and the other great masters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries has never been equalled or surpassed since.
Although there are still artists working in this medium, some of the original techniques have been lost, and printing presses to
handle the huge stone blocks are no longer manufactured – one of the reasons that, fortunately, fakes or forgeries are not
generally a problem in this field.
The Absinthe Robette poster shown above, with its wonderfully subtle and translucent shades of green, is technically speaking,
a particularly superlative example of this lithographic printing process.
Cheret's innovation took Paris, then France and then the world by storm. Never before had words and graphics been so tightly
and seamlessly integrated, and never before had such powerful and effective images been so cheap to produce. These
posters had ushered in the age of modern advertising.
Building on Cheret's work, a handful of artists adopted the medium and elevated the advertising poster to fine art. The pioneer,
in 1891, was Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. His first poster, Moulin Rouge, is a masterpiece and was recognised as such within two
decades of its initial production. Today it's one of the most sought after and valuable of all posters. In 1894, Alphonse Mucha, a
Czech artist working in Paris, ushered in the era of Art Nouveau poster design, with a sinuous and haunting style influenced by
the Pre-Raphaelites, the Arts and Crafts Movement, and the then vogue for Orientalism. This style was to dominate the Parisian
scene for at least the next decade, and inspire several worthy successors to Mucha, chief amongst them the Belgian posterist
Henri Privat-Livemont.
Within a few years of Cheret's first production, the most striking advertising posters were already being collected as art objects
in their own right, and in the 1890's the famous "Maitres de l'Affiche" series provided small format versions of the most famous
designs specifically for the collector market. Notwithstanding this however, the overwhelming majority of posters were
destroyed in actual use - mounted on walls or sidings and then ripped away when the next new image became available.
While the posters were originally produced in editions that usually numbered in the hundreds or even thousands, very few
survive in their original state. Those that survive in good condition today, usually originate from printer’s archives discovered
many decades later.
Price wise, the value of a Belle Epoque poster depends on five things: the reputation of the artist, the quality of the design, the
subject matter, the scarcity of the poster, and the condition.
Reputation:
Toulouse Lautrec stands head and shoulders above all other Belle Epoque poster artists in terms of value. Pretty much any
original large format Lautrec poster is worth upwards of $40000, and his rarest posters have fetched over a million dollars on
auction. Luckily he never produced an absinthe poster! Below this comes a group of 5 artists, generally regarded as the next
most significant: Cheret, Mucha, Steinlen, Privat-Livemont, and Cappiello. Privat-Livemont was Belgian, the rest all French.
Absinthe Robette, which he completed in 1896, was Privat-Livemont’s only absinthe poster, but there are 3 wonderful absinthe
posters by Cappiello, very different from the Livemont, but also using beautiful women to sell the product.
Quality of Design:
Posters are visual objects, and a great design will always be keenly sought after, even if the artist is a minor one (or even
anonymous). A good example is the famous poster for Absinthe Blanqui by "Nover" - a pseudonym for an unknown in-house
artist working for the Revon printing works.
Subject Matter:
Broadly speaking, the most popular collecting fields are Food & Drink, Women, Opera and Transport. Absinthe is obviously a
sub-category within Food & Drink, but it’s by far the most difficult field to collect. There are around 30 serious poster dealers
worldwide, who collectively have thousands of posters for sale – and as one can easily verify by searching, generally at any one
time there is not a single large format absinthe poster of any kind available ex stock from any of them. When they do
occasionally come up, they are immediately snapped up by one of the many serious collectors. The only category equivalently
sought after are original Verdi and Puccini opera posters, which one also simply never sees.
Scarcity:
Very few of these posters survive in acceptable condition. In many cases only a few dozen of each image exist, and in the case
of the rarest posters - a category that includes many of the greatest absinthe posters - surviving copies might be numbered on
the fingers of one hand.
Condition:
Belle Epoque posters generally don’t exist in the kind of “mint” condition you might expect from a limited edition art print – they
were printed for purely commercial purposes, on cheap paper, and were never originally intended for collectors. Almost all have
folds (because of their large size they were folded in quarters or eighths for storage). Often, as you’d expect, there is some
damage to the image, or paper loss, where the fold lines intersect. Usually this is expertly retouched when the poster is linen-
mounted. Other very common faults are fading (sometimes called “light-staining” ) and damage to the edges of the paper,
which tends to crumble unless it’s been mounted.
Collectors usually refer to A, B or C condition. “A” condition posters are unfaded, with only the faintest fold lines and no
restoration or paper replacement. “B” condition posters have more obvious fold lines, and some minor retouching. “C”
condition posters have extensive retouching and/or paper replacement and/or some degree of fading.
Which condition is acceptable depends on the scarcity of the poster. A collector might insist on the finest possible condition for
a relatively common poster, while being quite happy to accept a C condition example of one known to exist in only a handful of
copies.
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Description: 1894 Absinthe Parisienne by P. Gélis-Didot and Louis
Malteste
Condition: Very fine condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals if you'd like us to contact you if we find
another copy of this poster.
Malteste
Condition: Very fine condition, linen-mounted, fresh colors.
SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals if you'd like us to contact you if we find
another copy of this poster.
A wonderful absinthe poster in very fine condition - newly
linen-mounted to the highest archival standards. The last copy of this
poster to be offered on a major auction was sold in 1998.
This famous 1894 design for Absinthe Parisienne by P. Gélis-Didot
and Louis Malteste has a coyly erotic theme, emphasized by the
innuendo of the tag line "Bois donc, tu verras après..." (Drink - then
you'll see...) The man, based on Molière's comic doctor Diafoirus, is
chasing a not entirely reluctant redhead with a plunging neckline
around a giant and all too obviously phallic absinthe bottle.
On the grounds of artistic merit, importance, and overall scarcity, this
poster should fetch the same price as Cappiello's or Privat-Livemont's
absinthe posters (now increasingly all over $20 000). Until very recently
linen-mounted to the highest archival standards. The last copy of this
poster to be offered on a major auction was sold in 1998.
This famous 1894 design for Absinthe Parisienne by P. Gélis-Didot
and Louis Malteste has a coyly erotic theme, emphasized by the
innuendo of the tag line "Bois donc, tu verras après..." (Drink - then
you'll see...) The man, based on Molière's comic doctor Diafoirus, is
chasing a not entirely reluctant redhead with a plunging neckline
around a giant and all too obviously phallic absinthe bottle.
On the grounds of artistic merit, importance, and overall scarcity, this
poster should fetch the same price as Cappiello's or Privat-Livemont's
absinthe posters (now increasingly all over $20 000). Until very recently
this was a nearly impossible poster to find - not a single one appeared on auction between 1999 and mid 2006. Last year
however a small cache of proof material and around a dozen complete posters from the stocks of the original printer were
unearthed. This was a large number of posters for the market to absorb all at once, and it has resulted in this poster being
temporarily far less expensive than one would expect. Once the market has fully absorbed this new find the price is likely
to rapidly increase back to its historical level, on a par with Absinthe Robette or Capiello's Edouard Pernot. In the
meantime this is an opportunity to buy a poster of the highest quality, with exceptional investment potential.
1.20 metre x 0.82 metre.
Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.
however a small cache of proof material and around a dozen complete posters from the stocks of the original printer were
unearthed. This was a large number of posters for the market to absorb all at once, and it has resulted in this poster being
temporarily far less expensive than one would expect. Once the market has fully absorbed this new find the price is likely
to rapidly increase back to its historical level, on a par with Absinthe Robette or Capiello's Edouard Pernot. In the
meantime this is an opportunity to buy a poster of the highest quality, with exceptional investment potential.
1.20 metre x 0.82 metre.
Click on the thumbnail to enlarge.
Description: Absinthe Pernod Fils, circa 1910, by Charles Maire, original vintage
lithographic advertising carton in its original gilt-wood frame..
Condition: Overall unusually good condition for this image, see photographs for
details.
Price: SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals to put your name on the waiting list for a future copy.
lithographic advertising carton in its original gilt-wood frame..
Condition: Overall unusually good condition for this image, see photographs for
details.
Price: SOLD
Email Absinthe Originals to put your name on the waiting list for a future copy.
in the frame, but again this is a minor
issue, easily fixed.
Overall this is an unusually well
preserved example (in the case of the
frame, an exceptionally well preserved
example) of one of the most iconic of all
absinthe images, and one of great
importance from an art historical
perspective due to it's influence on the
Cubist movement.
Click on the images to see enlarged
versions.
issue, easily fixed.
Overall this is an unusually well
preserved example (in the case of the
frame, an exceptionally well preserved
example) of one of the most iconic of all
absinthe images, and one of great
importance from an art historical
perspective due to it's influence on the
Cubist movement.
Click on the images to see enlarged
versions.
Based on a painting by Charles Maire (1845 - 1919), this
ubiquitous image advertising Pernod Fils once hung in almost
every bar and cafe in France. Unusually, the chromolithograph was
backed on to canvas, and then varnished, giving it the appearance
of an original oil, enhanced by the custom gilt-wood frame.
Both Picasso and Braque were inspired by this image, using it as
the basis of some of the very earliest Cubist paintings - a copy of
this print hung in Picasso's studio. Read more here.
95% of the surviving copies of this print are in poor condition, often
with severe tears, and missing the frame. This remarkable
example is in unusually good condition, with the colours of the
frame still fresh (one of only two or three in this state I've ever
seen). The print itself has only one small area of damage, just
above the glass (see bottom photo) but this doesn't detract at all
from the overall appearance, and could easily be repaired if
desired by a paper conservation specialist. The print itself is loose
ubiquitous image advertising Pernod Fils once hung in almost
every bar and cafe in France. Unusually, the chromolithograph was
backed on to canvas, and then varnished, giving it the appearance
of an original oil, enhanced by the custom gilt-wood frame.
Both Picasso and Braque were inspired by this image, using it as
the basis of some of the very earliest Cubist paintings - a copy of
this print hung in Picasso's studio. Read more here.
95% of the surviving copies of this print are in poor condition, often
with severe tears, and missing the frame. This remarkable
example is in unusually good condition, with the colours of the
frame still fresh (one of only two or three in this state I've ever
seen). The print itself has only one small area of damage, just
above the glass (see bottom photo) but this doesn't detract at all
from the overall appearance, and could easily be repaired if
desired by a paper conservation specialist. The print itself is loose
This famous 1894 design for Absinthe
Parisienne by P. Gélis-Didot and Louis
Malteste has a coyly erotic theme,
emphasized by the innuendo of the tag line
"Bois donc, tu verras après..." (Drink - then
you'll see...) The man, based on Molière's
comic doctor Diafoirus, is chasing a not
entirely reluctant redhead with a plunging
neckline around a giant and all too obviously
phallic absinthe bottle.
This is NOT a printed poster, but an original,
one-off, oil-crayon and watercolour
artwork, prepared by the artist as a colour
proof. The colours are completely different
to the final printed version (a copy of which
can be seen further down this page). The
image is painted on thick cartridge paper,
rather than the thin newsprint used for the
printed posters of the era. It has been expertly
linen-mounted and is ready for framing.
Maquettes of this quality are museum-level
items that only very rarely come on the
market. They are still astonishingly
undervalued in our opinion - an original Belle
Epoque era pastel by an artist of Malteste's
renown, more than a metre square, would
typically be priced in six figures. This
maquette is priced very substantially lower
and represents outstanding value.
A wonderful opportunity for the serious
collector to acquire an irreplaceable
show-piece of tremendous artistic impact.
Format: 120 x 82cm
Click on the image to enlarge.
Parisienne by P. Gélis-Didot and Louis
Malteste has a coyly erotic theme,
emphasized by the innuendo of the tag line
"Bois donc, tu verras après..." (Drink - then
you'll see...) The man, based on Molière's
comic doctor Diafoirus, is chasing a not
entirely reluctant redhead with a plunging
neckline around a giant and all too obviously
phallic absinthe bottle.
This is NOT a printed poster, but an original,
one-off, oil-crayon and watercolour
artwork, prepared by the artist as a colour
proof. The colours are completely different
to the final printed version (a copy of which
can be seen further down this page). The
image is painted on thick cartridge paper,
rather than the thin newsprint used for the
printed posters of the era. It has been expertly
linen-mounted and is ready for framing.
Maquettes of this quality are museum-level
items that only very rarely come on the
market. They are still astonishingly
undervalued in our opinion - an original Belle
Epoque era pastel by an artist of Malteste's
renown, more than a metre square, would
typically be priced in six figures. This
maquette is priced very substantially lower
and represents outstanding value.
A wonderful opportunity for the serious
collector to acquire an irreplaceable
show-piece of tremendous artistic impact.
Format: 120 x 82cm
Click on the image to enlarge.
Preliminary sketches (or maquettes) in coloured inks, watercolour or oil crayon form a fascinating adjunct to the history of the
poster, allowing us to see the artist's first thoughts, and the gradual development of the final design. Generally maquettes like
this would be commissioned by an advertising agency and then presented to the client for final approval, before the design
was transferred to the polished limestone blocks for printing.
poster, allowing us to see the artist's first thoughts, and the gradual development of the final design. Generally maquettes like
this would be commissioned by an advertising agency and then presented to the client for final approval, before the design
was transferred to the polished limestone blocks for printing.
Description: Absinthe Parisienne, by Gelis Didot and Malteste - original crayon and watercolour artwork.
Condition: Very good condition, expertly linen-mounted.
Price code: F
SOLD.
Condition: Very good condition, expertly linen-mounted.
Price code: F
SOLD.
An extraordinary large double sided anti-alcohol poster (measuring 118cm x 97cm), illustrating graphically the alleged dangers of
industrial alcohol and absinthe, and praising the healthy effects of wine, cider and beer. Designed for display in schools, it clearly
shows the influence of the wine lobby as the force behind the French temperance movement, because the use of wine is not just
not condemned, it's almost actively encouraged. Particularly noteworthy are the two contrasting guinea pig experiments: in the one
the animal is fed industrial alcohol and has the usual epileptic fit and then dies a horrible death; in the other the guinea pig is fed
wine and has nothing worse than a pleasant sleep, before waking up with presumably only a mild hangover...
Absinthe is singled out for special opprobrium on the reverse side: L'Absinthe est un poison plus redoutable que la morphine et la
belladone - Absinthe is a more fearsome poison than morphine or deadly nightshade.
More photographs of both sides of this poster here.
industrial alcohol and absinthe, and praising the healthy effects of wine, cider and beer. Designed for display in schools, it clearly
shows the influence of the wine lobby as the force behind the French temperance movement, because the use of wine is not just
not condemned, it's almost actively encouraged. Particularly noteworthy are the two contrasting guinea pig experiments: in the one
the animal is fed industrial alcohol and has the usual epileptic fit and then dies a horrible death; in the other the guinea pig is fed
wine and has nothing worse than a pleasant sleep, before waking up with presumably only a mild hangover...
Absinthe is singled out for special opprobrium on the reverse side: L'Absinthe est un poison plus redoutable que la morphine et la
belladone - Absinthe is a more fearsome poison than morphine or deadly nightshade.
More photographs of both sides of this poster here.
Description: L'alcool, voila l'ennemi" anti-alcohol and anti-absinthe propaganda poster, circa 1900. Double-sided (for pictures
of the other side, see here). Original integral canvas lining.
Condition: Very good original condition, no restoration.
Price code: C
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to place an order.
of the other side, see here). Original integral canvas lining.
Condition: Very good original condition, no restoration.
Price code: C
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to place an order.
A previously undocumented large poster (37" x 40" )
"L'alcool, voila l'Ennemi" designed by the famous
posterist Frédéric Christol (1850-1933) and printed in
1910 by Berger & Levrault, Nancy. It was reproduced,
with altered colours, as the frontpiece of Achille
Mélandri's famous temperance tract L'Etoile bleue -
Absinthe, Vermouth, Bitter & Cie in 1912.
It's interesting to note that wine, beer and cider are
expressly omitted from the list of "Poisons de Choix" at
the bottom right of the poster. These were regarded as
natural and healthy, and seldom targeted by the French
temperance movement. ("Fine Champagne" is
cognac).
The poster combines a fascinating anti-absinthe
message with great beauty - the figures in the
foreground (including the dog) are exquisitely done. It's
also collectable not just by absinthe afficianados but
also by collectors of "posters showing posters", a very
popular speciality.
This is an extremely rare poster - only the second one
I've ever seen (the other is in my own collection).
Unrecorded in Delahaye's "L'Absinthe - Les Affiches".
A magnificent and important poster.
"L'alcool, voila l'Ennemi" designed by the famous
posterist Frédéric Christol (1850-1933) and printed in
1910 by Berger & Levrault, Nancy. It was reproduced,
with altered colours, as the frontpiece of Achille
Mélandri's famous temperance tract L'Etoile bleue -
Absinthe, Vermouth, Bitter & Cie in 1912.
It's interesting to note that wine, beer and cider are
expressly omitted from the list of "Poisons de Choix" at
the bottom right of the poster. These were regarded as
natural and healthy, and seldom targeted by the French
temperance movement. ("Fine Champagne" is
cognac).
The poster combines a fascinating anti-absinthe
message with great beauty - the figures in the
foreground (including the dog) are exquisitely done. It's
also collectable not just by absinthe afficianados but
also by collectors of "posters showing posters", a very
popular speciality.
This is an extremely rare poster - only the second one
I've ever seen (the other is in my own collection).
Unrecorded in Delahaye's "L'Absinthe - Les Affiches".
A magnificent and important poster.
Click on the images above to see enlarged versions.
Description: "L'alcool, voila l'Ennemi" (37" x 40" ) designed by Frédéric Christol (1850-1933) and printed in 1910 by Berger & Levrault.
Condition: Very good original condition, linen mounted, fresh colours.
Price code: D
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to place an order.
Description: "L'alcool, voila l'Ennemi" (37" x 40" ) designed by Frédéric Christol (1850-1933) and printed in 1910 by Berger & Levrault.
Condition: Very good original condition, linen mounted, fresh colours.
Price code: D
Email Absinthe Originals for more details on this poster, or to place an order.