Gustave Fraipont (1849-1923): L’Album Japonais, 2me Edition 1880

Note: We will be consulting an auction house on this item, but please let us know if you are interested
 
This extremely rare, large, old portfolio of unbound Japanese designs is officially entitled ‘Motifs Inedits Decoration Japonaise D’Apres Les Origninaux par Gustave Fraipont’ (Unedited Patterns Japanese Decoration After the Originals by Gustave Fraipont). It was edited by A. Calavas and published by Calavas Fres Editeurs at 68 Rue Lafayette, Paris.
 
It is supposed to have 30 loose pages of artwork as well as a cover page. Our version is missing five pages (p. 4, 6, 17, 23 and 29). Some pages are valuable chromolithographs.
 
Our understanding is Gustave Fraipont, as a professor of drawing, authored several studies such as this about illustration. He was a famous Belgian turned Frenchman who also illustrated books and designed famous railway posters.
 
Dated 1880, we presume this was inherited from the Burr or Gerbode family. We cannot be sure. The initials UM appear inside the front cover. We have no idea who that might be.
 
The folder itself is a bit worn, with the tie between front and back panels broken, but the binding intact. A few pages have foxing on the back, only one with foxing on the front. A few also have stains. Otherwise, it is in relatively good condition for its age. See photos above for an overview of condition. Click on this link to see all images included.
 
H 17 1/8” x L 12 3/8” x D ¾”
Illustrated pages H 15 3/8” x L 11 3/8”
 
Disclaimer: We have tried to make sure colors shown in photos are representative of the real colors of each item. We have tried to identify all imperfections in descriptions, but we may have missed some. If you are unhappy with your purchase, let us know.