Le Triomphe du Paladin was designed by Julia Abadie for the Maison Hermès and first issued in 1999.
Paladins as they are sometimes called, were Charlemagne’s crusading warriors. Charlemagne or Charles the Great was a King of the Franks. He is credited for uniting most of Europe in the late 700s. Charles the Great became the First Holy Roman Emperor. He united all Germanic peoples under one Christian crown. He is many times referred to as the Father of Europe.
Julia Abadie’s showcases Charlemagne’s conquests in a rich composition befitting an emperor.
Enjoy this splendid carre.
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About “Le Triomphe du Paladin”: I do not know whether the identification of the horseman with Charlemagne is due to Julie Abadie. Anyway, he is not Charlemagne, but St George killing the dragon. The mediaeval legend takes place in Cappadocia. It owes many details to the Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda. The earliest version of the legend of St George is a Georgian text dating to the 11th century. With the Crusades, both the legend and the iconography of the fight between the the paladin and the dragon spread to Constantinople and later to the West. On the scarf, in the four corners, the four steps of the fight are depicted (top left, top right, bottom right, bottom left). St George wears a parade cuirass in the late Roman style, high hunting boots, and a military purple cloak. The for roundels and the border are bejeweled with gemstones. Both this decoration and the main roundels around the central tondo are in a typical Byzantine style.
Dear Elisabetta, Thank you for your wonderful insights and for sharing them with me and my readers. Much appreciated! With gratitude, Ladi