189 - PHOTOLINE - c. 1900

PHOTOLINE - c. 1900 Illustration by PAL (Jean de Paléologue, known as), not credited. An exceptional and extremely rare original lithographed and embossed advertising sheet metal. 45.5 x 34.3 cm. “D.H & S. Sole agent Raoul Kahn, Bordeaux” A breathtaking collector’s item— An allegory of modernity and celestial light. Under a night sky sparkling with stars and planets, a nude female figure, like a fairy, emerges from the heavens on her cloud to illuminate Marseille. She holds aloft a radiant kerosene lamp, whose light shimmers in the colors of the “PHOTOLINE” lettering. Below, the Marseille skyline unfolds with remarkable topographical precision: one can make out the Notre-Dame de la Garde Basilica and its access road, the Old Port flanked by the Forts Saint-Jean and Saint-Nicolas, the Major Cathedral, as well as the Former Sanitary Depot. Museum-quality, in absolutely exceptional condition. This dazzling collector’s piece retains its original luster in its entirety. The design features a remarkable color gradient, ranging from a midnight-blue night sky to a light green. The gold highlights on the stars, planets, and borders are intact. The deep-relief embossing is masterful, lending a superb three-dimensional presence to the female figure and the “PHOTOLINE” lettering. - Pure beauty - Launched in Marseille in 1876 by the Compagnie Générale des Pétroles, “PHOTOLINE” established itself during the Belle Époque as the leading brand of refined safety kerosene for domestic lighting and kerosene lamps. The company also distributed automotive fuels (naptha-cycle) and lubricating oils produced at its “La Moderne” oil mills. The company became part of the American Standard Oil (Rockefeller) group in the 1920s, before being definitively absorbed in 1947 by the predecessor of Esso France. Bouches-du-Rhône/PACA Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur