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HISTORY OF LACE.

CHAPTER IX.

LOUIS XIV.

The courtiers of the regency under Anne of Austria vied withthe Erondeurs in extravagance. The latter, however, had thebest of it.

“La Fronde,” writes Joly, “devint tellement a la mode qu’iln’y avoit rien de bien fait qu’on ne dist etre de la Fronde. Lesetoffes, les dentelles etc., jusqu’au pain,—rien n’estoit ni bon, nibien si n’estoit a la Fronde.” 1

Nor was the queen regent herself less profuse in her indul-gence in lace. She is represented in her portraits with a bertheof rich point, her beautiful hand encircled by a double-scallopedcuff (Fig. G2).

The boot-tops had now reached an extravagant size. Onewriter compares them to the farthingales of the ladies, another toan inverted torch. The lords of the regent’s court filled up theapertures with two or three rows of Genoa point (Fig. 63).

In 1653, we find Mazarin, while engaged in the siege of a city,holding a grave correspondence with his secretary Colbert con-cerning the purchase of some points from Flanders, Venice, andGenoa. He considers it advisable to advance thirty or fortythousand livres “ a ces achapts,” adding that by making thepurchases in time he will derive great advantage in the price,but as he hopes the siege will soon be at an end, they may waithis arrival at Paris for his final decision. 2 Colbert again writes,November 25, pressing his eminence on account of the “ quan-titc de manages qui se feront l’hyver.”

A passage in Tallemant des lieaux would lead one to supposethese laces were destined as patterns for the improvement of

1 “ Memoirs do Guy Joly,” from given in full by Comte de Labordc

l()48-ti5. “ Le Calais Mazarin,” Paris, 1S45.

2 Dated 19 Nov. lfinS. The letter is