A Very Fine Late 17th/Early 18th Century Painted, Carved and Pierced Ivory Brisé Fan, possibly Dutch, with twenty-eight inner sticks and two guards, and tortoiseshell thumb guards. The guards are carved with a figure and flowers in relief, their backgrounds of a deep powder blue, giving good contrast, some features gilded. Central to the gorge is a delicately painted oval vignette containing a portrait of a European lady who appears to be holding a bow, two further vignettes to either side with flowers, two pink roses and an orange parrot tulip. The body of the fan is in three main sections, each bordered with pairs of pierced and highly decorative gilded sticks, painted with Chinoiserie scenes, roses and tulips. The panel to the left shows a man seated on a stone terrace with balustrade, a small pond to his side with water lily leaves. The central scene shows ladies dressed in medieval costume, one with a wimple, gathering around a king on the ground, being tended by a lady, an elderly bearded man looking on. In the final panel a young woman is seated outside in a rural location. All panels are bordered in gold and surrounded by elaborate gilding and some repetition of the blue. The verso is a mirror image outline. The deep cream ribbon is plain, possibly a replacement .Guard length 23.5cm
See Nancy Armstrong's "The Book of Fans" pages 60 and 61 for a brisé with similarities, described as Dutch.