The Rococo-style received its name in the 19th century from
French émigrés, who used the word to designate in whimsical
fashion the old shellwork style (style rocaille), then regarded
as Old Frankish, as opposed to the succeeding more simple
styles. Essentially, it is in the same kind of art and
decoration as flourished in France during the regency following
Louis XIV's death, and remained in fashion for about forty years
(1715-1750). It might be termed the climax or degeneration of
the Baroque, which, coupled with French grace, began towards the
end of the reign of Louis XIV to convert grotesques into curves,
lines, and bands (Jean Bérain, 1638-1711). As its effect was
less pronounced on architectural construction than elsewhere, it
is not so much a real style as a new kind of decoration, which
culminates in the resolution of architectural forms of the
interiors (pilasters and architraves) by arbitrary ornamentation
after the fashion of an unregulated, enervated Baroque, while
also influencing the arrangemen