Chemins de fer de l'Est: Pavillon de Contrexéville

This is a splendid Belle Époque advertising poster promoting the spa town of Contrexéville, in the Vosges region of France, and more specifically its celebrated “Source du Pavillon”. Printed in chromolithography (or color lithography) by G. Bataille, Paris, this piece invited spa-goers to visit Contrexéville during the water season, from May 20 to September 20.

The poster is dated around 1905 (some sources mention “circa 1905”) and depicts an elegant scene of visitors in period dress strolling through the pavilion of the spring, beneath its delicate wrought-iron architecture. Its design is typical of late 19th- and early 20th‑century railway posters — a blend of tourist elegance, railway promotion, and the allure of thermal spas.

The Chemins de Fer de l’Est (Eastern Railway Company), founded in 1854 and dissolved in 1937, was highly active in promoting tourism on its network through striking posters, particularly for destinations renowned for health and fresh air.

The elegant woman at the center of the poster may well be the great French actress and icon of her time, Sarah Bernhardt.