Image: Vigier's baths, Year V - 1797

Description: This plate shows a woman descending a staircase in front of the Bains Vigier or the Pavillon des Flore in the 1st arrondissement of Paris. Her dress is typical of the early 19th century. She wears a high-waisted, loose and flowing white dress made of light material. These dresses were made to imitate the style of classical Greece. However, France was much colder than ancient Greece and this woman wears a three quarters length overdress, worn like a shawl over the looser and lighter white robe. This woman is depicted in front of a building reading 'Thermes' where several similarly dressed ladies mill about. Dating back to ancient Greece and Rome, thermal baths and other spa treatments became fashionable in the late 18th century in England and moved throughout Europe, especially among the elite. Spas were often constructed on top of a natural source of water, which was said to have medicinal qualities specific to various ailments.
Usage Terms: Public domain