The first copperplate-printed toiles were made in Ireland in 1752 by Francis Nixon of Drumcondra. Being very popular they were soon exported as the images of Franklin and Washington on post –Revolutionary War English toiles conquered the American market.
In 1759 german Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf (1738 –1815) moved to Jouy-en-Josas (near Versailles -FR) and started a toiles factory there producing provincial florals and from 1783 on the Toiles de Jouy as his luxury line. They became the most popular copperplate- or roller printed toiles, usually printed in red, blue, sepia or green on white cotton cloth. Oberkampf hired the best artists of the time to design these prints with engraved vignettes of historical figures, landscapes and even mythological scenes. They were used for home furnishings. Oberkampf became the town's first mayor in 1790.
On the picture above a detail of “The merchant of love” designed by Louis Hippolyte LeBas (FR), Jouy-en-Josas 1815/17 (e-repeats.com collection).
Surface pattern designs based on these toiles are classified as 'Historical' in the e-repeats.com online pattern design database.
