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a book with writing on it sitting on a tablean old open book with writing on it sitting on a tablean open book with writing on it sitting on top of a tablean open book with a handwritten page on the front and a handwritten page on the backa book open to a page with writing on itan old book sitting on top of a white table next to a white wall
Premium Maître Paul PASTAUD

864 - [MANUSCRIPT]. Thirty Years in the Life of a Man of No Import…
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Estimate €1,800 - €2,000
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Description
[MANUSCRIPT]. Thirty Years in the Life of a Man of No Importance, from 1791 to 1821; or Memoirs of a Non-commissioned Officer in the Army of the Empire; written and compiled by the author himself. Paris, 102 Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Martin [later:] 41 Rue des Gravilliers, 1832–1833. 2 vols. in-8, 426 pp., pp. 209–224 inserted by mistake between pp. 240 and 241; 510 pp., covered with fine and generally legible handwriting (approximately 25 lines per page), a few erasures and crossings-out, bound in temporary green paper covers. Covers are faded, with small areas of paper missing on the first folios of vol. I, resulting in the loss of some letters. A curious and voluminous autobiographical manuscript, which has remained unpublished, recounting the adventures of a humble conscript of the Empire, from Wagram to the Spanish campaign, then on to Italy, right up to the Restoration. Blending military episodes, romantic adventures and scenes from everyday life, this account—of astonishing literary quality—oscillates between authentic memoirs and fiction, though it is not possible today to determine definitively which it is. (Details on request.)
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About the sale MONTIGNAC – 31st BOOK SALE – Day 2 of 4 – Nos. 550 to 1084
Auction location
Auction time 08/20/2026 at 11:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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