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an old book with a black and white image of the title of a poem
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68 - PLUCHONNEAU (the elder) – MAILLARD (Hippolyte).
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Estimate €300 - €400
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Description
PLUCHONNEAU (the elder) – MAILLARD (Hippolyte). Physiology of Black People in Their Native Lands, preceded by an Overview of the Condition of Enslaved Black People in the Colonies; an account of the Slave Trade; and reflections on Emancipation. Paris: available from all leading booksellers, 1842. — In-32, 132 x 90: (2 ff.), 124 pp., 8 plates, illustrated cover. Green Bradel-style percaline, smooth spine, untrimmed, cover preserved (20th-century binding). Lhéritier, *Les Physiologies*, no. 113. First edition of this very rare work on physiology, dedicated ‘to the two Chambers, to the Delegates of the Colonies, to the Creoles or colonial planters, and to all the philanthropists of the world.’ This type of work was very much in vogue at the time; this particular volume, written by Pluchonneau the Elder and Hippolyte Maillard, is a pamphlet against emancipation: ‘Freedom belongs to all men, whatever country they may be from; we revere it as a cherished idol, we have fought for it, we pray in its temple, kneeling on the steps of the altar; we would like it to be even greater, if possible; we hope that it may become a constant reality, that all peoples may understand and respect it. But despite our convictions on this matter, we hold another: the spontaneous freedom proclaimed in the French colonies will morally destroy the slave, and this fatal blow will strike, as we have said, 45,000 of our brothers. Is that philanthropy, gentlemen?’ (Conclusion). The work is divided into 26 chapters: Considerations on Emancipation. – Black Guardians. – An Evening with a Slave Family. – The Black Cook. – A Word on Prostitution in Madagascar. - The Black Cape Woman on the Plantation. – The Black Peddler. – A Dialogue between a Black Creole and a Black Cape Man. – Black Seamen. – Trades Taught to Slaves, etc. The edition is illustrated with several woodcut vignettes within the text and eight black-and-white lithographs as inserts, the first signed by the lithographer Paul Petit, depicting Black slaves in various situations (dancing, scenes from everyday life, etc.). A good copy with the cover intact. Stains and small tears to the cover. Scattered foxing.
See original version (French)
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About the sale Claude Mozis Library – Black Africa and the African diaspora
Auction location
Auction time 10/21/2026 at 2:00 PM
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