The French especially loved the fan and one belonging to Madame de Pompadour, mistress of Louis XV, included paper that was cut in imitation of lace, contained ten painted miniatures, took nine years to make and cost almost £20,000. Artists that decorated fans were not averse to signing them as they would a painting, as some were indeed works of art. As the fan eventually filtered down to women at all levels of society it was clear its popularity lay not so much in its stunning craftsmanship as in its ability, when correctly handled, to speak volumes in a world which generally allowed women
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