Albert-Charles-Auguste Racinet - Le Costume Historique - 1888

Major documentary and iconographic work by Albert-Charles-Auguste Racinet (1825-1893), a French artist and art historian, published in six quarto volumes by Firmin-Didot in 1888. Racinet, who also worked on several other documentary works, highlights in this book the study of costumes through the ages and civilizations, emphasizing their close relationship with the customs, traditions, and lifestyles of peoples.

The content of the 'Costume historique' is rich and varied, comprising 500 plates, including 300 in color, gold and silver produced by the chromolithography process, which allows for a vibrant and precise rendering. The other plates are in monochrome. The work is structured into four main parts covering from classical antiquity (Egypt, Assyria, Israel, Persia, Greece, Rome) to more distant ancient civilizations (Oceania, Africa), then European civilizations up to the 19th century. Besides civilian costumes, Racinet also focuses on religious and military attire, as well as related aspects such as food, means of transportation, or rites accompanying these costumes, offering an ethnographic and iconographic panorama that is highly well-documented.

The main interest of the work lies not only in the quality of its finely colored and historically accurate illustrations but also in the overall approach adopted by Racinet. It provides a remarkable visual and historical testimony of fashions and adornments, offering researchers, historians, and art enthusiasts an essential resource on past clothing and accessories, their symbolism, and their function in society. The publication by Firmin-Didot, renowned for the quality of its editions, grants 'Costume historique' an elegant and durable presentation.

The volumes are bound in half aubergine morocco with smooth spines and gilt titles. The copy has a notable provenance evidenced by the engraved and pasted ex-libris on the reverse of the covers: the sculptor and ceramist Charles Henri Delanglade, born in Marseille on May 26, 1870, and died in the same city on January 20, 1952. Coming from a family of Marseille notaries, he first studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Marseille under Émile Aldebert, then continued his training in Paris at the Beaux-Arts with Jules Cavelier and Louis-Ernest Barrias. After studying in Italy, Delanglade developed a diverse body of work including portraits, medals, art trinkets in various materials such as silver, bronze, and marble, as well as creations in faience and stoneware. He was admitted to the Marseille Academy, succeeding Jules Cantini, and notably undertook monumental commissions such as the Louis XIV group, a major work in his career. His work is recognized for its variety and refinement across multiple artistic techniques.

The bindings are slightly rubbed with some loss of marbled paper, opaque marks on the leather, foxing mainly on the first volume with fewer on the others, there is an inversion of the pages of the notice text 440, the last plate of the final volume and the endpaper are detached, and the other defects are minor.