La Divine Comtesse. Photographs of the Countess de Castiglione

Pierre Apraxine & Xavier Demange.

Yale University Press in association with The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New Haven and London & New York. 2000. English-language revised edition. First published in France in 1999. Paperback, quarto; illustrated wrappers. 192 pages. Illustrated throughout in colour and b&w. English. 280 x 220mm. 0.85kg. 9780300085099. Very good; slight shelf wear, light crease to rear lower forecorner, previous owner's name to half-title.

The catalogue for an exhibition of the extraordinary photographs of the Countess de Castiglione commissioned by herself. Virginia Oldoini, Countess of Castiglione (1837-1899) was an Italian aristocrat who achieved notoriety as a mistress of Emperor Napoleon III of France. She was also a significant figure in the early history of photography directing Pierre-Louis Pierson to photograph her over 700 times at key moments in her life. The resulting pictures show the Countess in the many guises and costumes for which she was renowned. Elaborate and exotic fashions are depicted here, as well as more "risqué" photos showing a bare leg or an exposed ankle.