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an old framed document with a picture of a man on itthe declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declaration of the declarationa page from a book with a picture of a horse on ita plaque on the side of a building with writing on it
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Estimate €2,000 - €3,000
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Description
[Monarchy] Will of Louis XVI printed on silk, c. 1795 Will of Louis XVI, drawn up at the Temple on 25 December 1792 Copy of the will printed on silk in London by W. Bulmer for Mr Peltier, No. 11, Ponton Street, Haymarket Copy belonging to His Eminence Cardinal de Rohan Medallion portrait of Louis XVI, engraved in stipple by Mariano Bovi (1757–1813), an Italian specialist in the technique of stipple engraving based in London (who went bankrupt in 1805), after a work by the miniature painter Pierre-André Le Suire c. 1795 51 x 32.5 cm (image size; traces of water damage) set in a gilded frame dating from the Second Restoration period, 59 x 41 cm (including mount); on the reverse, a label (partly erased) from the Vallardi print shop, established in 1814 at 5 Boulevard Poissonnière in Paris The execution of Louis XVI, which took place on 21 January 1793, marked not only the end of a reign, but also the beginning of an unprecedented phase of deification of the royal figure within the French émigré communities. Among the most remarkable objects of political devotion produced during this period, the king’s will, drawn up at the Tour du Temple on 25 December 1792, occupies a central place. The edition, printed on silk in London by William Bulmer at the instigation of the publicist Jean-Gabriel Peltier, is an example of the convergence between the technical excellence of British typography and the ideological fervour of the exiled royalists. This object is both a political manifesto and a sacred relic. Louis XVI’s will was drafted in the isolation of his captivity whilst his trial before the National Convention was underway. In it, the king expresses his forgiveness towards his executioners, advises his son not to seek revenge for his death, and reaffirms his loyalty to the Roman Catholic Church. From the very day after his execution, the text circulated in the form of handwritten copies and clandestine pamphlets in France, but it was in England that its production took on a monumental and lavish scale. For French émigrés, the will was not merely a declaration of last wishes; it became the founding text of the future Restoration. The decision to print it on silk—a noble material traditionally associated with liturgical vestments and the regalia of royalty—was intended to lift the document out of the daily flow of ephemeral printed matter and enshrine it in permanence. At the end of the 18th century, William Bulmer, regarded as one of London’s most talented printmakers, practised from 1790 to 1819. For Louis XVI’s will, Bulmer used typefaces engraved by William Martin, a type foundryman whose style marked a break with traditional forms, embracing the rigour and clarity of the ‘Modern’ style of the period. Printing on silk posed considerable technical challenges. Unlike paper, silk does not absorb ink in the same way and can warp under the pressure of a flatbed press. Bulmer had to adapt his technique to ensure that the fine lines of Martin’s type remained sharp and that the text remained legible despite the texture of the fabric. This technical feat justified the high price of these copies, which were sold by name as devotional objects intended to be framed and displayed in aristocratic homes. Having emigrated to London after 10 August 1792, the publicist Jean-Gabriel Peltier founded a publishing agency there which became the linchpin of the royalist resistance against the Convention, and subsequently against the Directory and the Consulate. Peltier was a tireless polemicist, known for his newspapers such as *L’Ambigu* and his contribution to the *Actes des Apôtres*. By publishing this document in London, he was addressing two audiences: the French nobility in exile, to strengthen unity around the cult of the martyred king, and British public opinion, to justify the war effort against republican France. Our fine copy was commissioned by Cardinal de Montmorency-Laval, Grand Chaplain of France in 1786, who was created a cardinal on 30 March 1789, went into exile in 1792, and, at the request of Louis XVIII, married Madame Royale and the Duke of Angoulême in Mittau in 1799.
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About the sale ARCHIVES, BOOKS & MANUSCRIPTS
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Auction time 10/08/2026 at 2:00 PM
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