NEW! Absinthe Pernod Fils – Goûtez la Véritable Fée Verte

**Artist: Elliott Best 
**Medium:** Chromolithograph poster
**Dimensions:** Typical café wall size (approx. 60 x 90 cm, variations exist)
**Publisher/Advertiser:** Maison Pernod Fils, Pontarlier, France (ca. 1890–1910)

Description

This Belle Époque chromolithograph advertisement features a striking bottle of Pernod Fils absinthe, the era’s most prestigious brand, paired with the iconic preparation ritual: a stemmed glass filled with green absinthe, topped with a perforated spoon holding a sugar cube. In the hazy background, spectral silhouettes and the faint form of a woman evoke la fée verte (“the green fairy”), the mythical muse of poets, painters, and bohemians of fin-de-siècle Paris.

Historical Context

Pernod Fils: Founded in 1805, Pernod Fils became synonymous with quality absinthe. By the late 19th century, its name was shorthand for the drink itself. The Green Fairy: Absinthe was mythologized as a source of inspiration for artists such as Toulouse-Lautrec, Picasso, Van Gogh, and Oscar Wilde. Its supposed hallucinogenic effects contributed to its mystique.

This poster would have hung prominently in Parisian cafés and bistros, reinforcing the allure of absinthe as both exotic and essential to modern life.

Artist & Style

Though unsigned, the work reflects the influence of Jules Chéret, the “father of the modern poster,” whose lithographs brought color, dynamism, and a sense of joie de vivre to Parisian advertising. The flat lithographic colors, swirling smoke, and balance of product realism with allegorical imagery are all characteristic of Chéret’s school.

Significance

This poster is more than an advertisement: it’s a cultural artifact from Paris’s Belle Époque, symbolizing both the glamour and controversy of absinthe. For contemporary collectors and designers, it embodies vintage elegance, mythmaking, and the romance of café society.

View our collection of gorgeous Belle Époque designs here.

Our Pernod absinthe poster is an original design by Elliott Best. Check it out in more detail, as well as our colorful new collection of chromolithographs by Chéret, Jules (1836-1932). PLUS! Take 10% off your first order!