Gold lamé waistcoat – France Louis XV period Circa 1770

Low-cut waistcoat in gold-spun cloth fashioned with miniature rhombuses dating from the end of the Louis XV period. Fitted cut, crew neck, complete with buttons covered in the same material. Back and lining in unbleached cotton. No holes or stains. Very good condition, the lamé has kept its shine.

Dimensions: French men’s size 48 equivalent. Shoulders 38 cm, chest 95 cm, height 74 cm, waist 87 cm.

Published and exhibited in the Villa Rosemaine 2023 catalogue.
* The corps des ouvriers en draps d’or, d’argent et de soie (gold, silver and silk cloth workers’ corps), set up in 1610, integrated the two branches of weavers into a single corps, one – the velvet weaver – specialising in heavy fabrics, the other – the taffetassier – producing light fabrics. Taffetas were made in Lyon, Paris, Tours and Nîmes for the Kingdom of France, but also in England, Avignon, Spain and Florence. The variety of names given to these different taffetas tells us about the prosperity and specialisation of certain European cities in the manufacture and trade of light silk fabrics: Armoisin taffeta and “florence” came from Italy and were imported by Italian merchants to Lyon. Avignon made demi-armoisin and demi-florence, which were lighter than those from Lyon. The gros from Tours imitated and perfected the gros from Naples, while the taffeta from England, considered in the 18th century to be a fabric of exceptional quality, was also used by Lyon artisans. The diversity of production sites should not obscure the golden age of Lyon’s “Grande Fabrique de Soie”, which was reformed and modernised under the reign of Louis XIV by the decisive action of Colbert to set itself apart from other European factories”.
* extract from a publication by the Archives départementales de Vaucluse – Avignon 2020