Alph. Babotte · Carlson Fable Collection

Title

Alph. Babotte

Description

1890? 5 colored French cards, with golden sky and block letters, picturing scenes from La Fontaine's fables. Just under 2¾" x just under 4". One card ("Le Loup, la Mère et l'Enfant") was printed by "Alph. Barbotte, 23, rue de Cherche-Midi, Paris." For an average of 50 Francs each from Bertrand Cocq, Calonne-Ricouart, France, March, '01, and Annick Tilly, Clignancourt, August, '01.

These five cards all have a gold background, whether sky or wall in the individual scene. On CJ the gold has deteriorated. Two (CJ and TB) have a stamp on the picture advertising Chocolat Poulain (see my Chocolat Poulain Orange cards). The images belong to a series that appear in this collection in several places: Maison Salmon, Alcide Picard, and Verger-Haquet. The most animated and engaging of the scenes here may be that of the mother stealing her child away from the wolf, while the father prepares to shoot the animal. The backs of these cards are quite varied. TB and CJ are again alike in presenting only the fable's text, though in different formatting. TB's formatting fits with that of " L'Ours et l'Amateur des Jardin," and here again only the fable's text is offered. "Le Vieillard et les trois jeunes Hommes" has a blank verso. "Le Loup, la Mère et l'Enfant" presents a page of advertising for J. Vigreux, a hosiery dealer in Amiens. The fables in this series thus include:

Date

1890?

Source

For an average of 50 Francs each from Bertrand Cocq, Calonne-Ricouart, France, March, '01, and Annick Tilly, Clignancourt, August, '01.