Product Description

"New Orleans is never more herself than during this reign of folly and ritual calendar of earthly delights -- when the deities of forgotten pantheons and the splendours of long vanished courts are restored for a season, summoned into being from the guilded vaults of the old city's memory." Though Mardi Gras had been celebrated in New Orleans for many years, the Golden Age of Carnival artistry began in the 1870s, and was marked by shimmering pageants and opulent private balls. These balls were attended by invitation only, and the invitations were as lushly executed as the balls and pageants themselves. Over two hundred invitations, dance cards, and admit cards are assembled here, with the vivid and mysterious artwork drawn from subjects in mythology, history, whimsy, and nature, by artists who often toiled in anonymity. New Orleans collectibles, and especially Mardi Gras collectibles, continue to be popular worldwide. This gorgeous volume of vintage Mardi Gras ball invitations, dance cards, and admit cards shows off just what kinds of collectibles are still available. For the noncollector, this book offers a wonderful look back on the glories of Carnival art.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1392511 in Books
• Published on: 2000-09
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 160 pages

Customer Reviews

Window on a Golden Age
Whether your interest is socio-cultural, historical or purely aesthetic, you will treasure Henri Schindler's latest passport to the "Golden Age" of the New Orleans Carnival celebration. Schindler, who is himself a treasure-trove of information on this subject, has put together a most interesting documentary providing an in-depth discussion of the historical roots of the pre-Lenten festival against a background of the artists, illustrators and patrons who gave the "Golden Age" its particular look and ambience. The quality of the color reproductions of the invitations that make up a major part of the book is most impressive. The color and clarity of these (mostly) art nouveau works comes across on each page, leaving the reader with the feeling that he or she has truly been a part of this romantic era.

Over two hundred invitations, dance cards and admit cards
Over two hundred invitations, dance cards and admit cards are assembled here in a coverage of the art work associated with the Mardi Gras which began in the 1870s and was marked by pageants and private balls. While Mardi Gras Treasures is a specialty collection of interest to those researching New Orleans collectibles and Mardi Gras collectibles in particular, many a reader will delight in these full-page illustrations.